Republican House speaker, Mike Johnson, called an early recess as Democrats push for a vote to release the Epstein files. Key US politics stories from Tuesday 22 July at a glance
Mounting pressure over President Donald Trump’s alleged ties to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has reportedly rattled and divided Republican congress members so deeply that the House speaker called an early recess on Tuesday.
Democrats had pushed for a vote to release files related to Epstein as Trump fends off questions over his relationship with the financier, who died by suicide in his jail cell in 2019. Now the House will break up on Wednesday instead of Thursday in what Democrats say is a way to dodge the vote.