The Paper Trail: July 14, 2026

Trump Denies Disaster Aid for D States; Therapists Blame Kalshi for Gambling Addiction; Who’s Behind the $3.47-Gallon Gas Stations?

July 14, 2026

Announcements

Top Stories

Trump ousts remaining members of the Election Assistance Commission ahead of midterms

President Trump forced out the last three members of the Election Assistance Commission, the independent, bipartisan commission that assists election administration officials nationwide. All three had been unanimously confirmed by the Senate.

(Jane C. Timm and Jonathan Allen, NBC News)

Trump to assert voting machine vulnerabilities in Thursday speech
(Jana Winter, Jonathan Landay, and Erin Banco, Reuters)

DOJ issues nationwide threat to prosecute local election officials

Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon sent a letter to dozens of state and local election officials threatening to prosecute them if any noncitizens are found to have voted in the upcoming midterms.

(Jenna Monnin, NOTUS)

Conflicting court orders over citizenship data stir more midterm confusion
(Patrick Marley and Mark Berman, Washington Post)
FBI analysts fired after refusing to join Georgia 2020 election probe
(Ken Dilanian, MS NOW)

Fired EPA dissenters sue for reinstatement, alleging First Amendment violations

Seven former EPA staffers who were fired last year for signing an open letter criticizing EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin filed a lawsuit over their removal, alleging illegal retaliation for exercising their First Amendment rights. They allege they were targeted for removal because, as probationary employees, they had fewer civil service protections.

(Erich Wagner, Government Executive)

He wanted to track microplastics in the sea. The EPA fired him
(Hiroko Tabuchi, New York Times)

Iran War

Trump notifies Congress of new war against Iran

President Trump this weekend formally notified Congress that the nation is once again at war with Iran, giving his administration another 60-day clock to use the military in the region without congressional approval.

(Connor O'Brien, Leo Shane III, and Mark Satter, Politico)

Trump says U.S. military will reimpose blockade on Iranian ports
(Michael Birnbaum, Tara Copp, and Gerry Shih, Washington Post)

Trump Anti-Weaponization Fund

Weaponization of the Government

Epstein Files

Epstein moved millions through mysterious Virgin Islands bank right before arrest

In the months leading up to Jeffrey Epstein’s arrest in 2019, a small U.S. Virgin Islands bank he owned that had no employees and laid dormant for years suddenly came alive with a flurry of transactions totaling more than $20 million. In the months after Epstein died, an additional $25 million was moved through the bank, with roughly a quarter of that amount coming from unspecified sources.

(Shirsho Dasgupta, Miami Herald)

Justice Department defends decision not to release, unredact more Epstein files
(Sophie Brams, The Hill)

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