Files on the disgraced paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein, including documents on the investigation into his death in prison in 2019, are expected to be released on Friday after a lengthy political saga.
The US Department of Justice must make all files related to its investigation into Epstein public by 19 December to comply with a legal deadline.
As the clock ticked, House Democrats released dozens more photos from the estate of Epstein, showing his associations with the rich and famous.
Democrats release new Epstein photos
Democrats on the House oversight committee have released a new batch of photographs from the Epstein estate, including images of Bill Gates posing with a woman whose face has been redacted, and Noam Chomsky on a plane with Epstein. All the images are undated and lack captions or context, and the appearance of these people in the photos is not evidence of wrongdoing.
In the tranche are photographs of what appear to be lines from Vladimir Nabokov’s novel Lolita written on a woman’s body. The batch also includes photos of a number of foreign passports and a screenshot of a text message conversation from a unknown sender referring to an 18-year-old from Russia.
Kennedy Center board votes to add Trump’s name to DC arts institution
The board of the Kennedy Center in Washington DC is moving ahead with a proposal to rename the arts and culture-focused institution, named after President John F Kennedy, in honor of Donald Trump, according to a White House announcement on Thursday.
If the White House move succeeds it would be called the Trump-Kennedy Center, though it is unclear if this change would be legal.
US prices continued to rise despite Trump claims they are ‘rapidly’ falling
US prices rose 2.7% in the year to November, according to federal data released a day after Trump claimed they were falling “very fast” on his watch. The latest consumer price index, released on Wednesday morning, was down from 3% in September, and short of economists’ expectations of about 3.1% for last month.
Trump administration to end gender-affirming care for minors
The Trump administration unveiled new actions aimed at eliminating transition-related medical care for minors across the US, referring to such treatments as “sex-rejecting procedures”, a term used by the Department of Health and Human Services.
As part of the effort, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will initiate a rule-making process that would prevent hospitals from offering puberty blockers, hormone treatments, or surgical procedures to minors if they wish to participate in Medicare or Medicaid.
Trump’s $1,776 ‘warrior dividend’ repurposed from military housing aid
The “warrior dividend” that Trump announced on Wednesday is not a Christmas bonus made possible by tariff revenues, as the president appeared to suggest during his televised address to the nation. Instead, his administration says the $1,776 payments to troops are coming from a congressionally approved housing supplement.
Trump signs order reclassifying marijuana as less dangerous
Trump signed an executive order to move cannabis out of the most restrictive drug category, a change that would loosen limits on research and certain regulations but stop short of making marijuana legal nationwide.
Trump Media announces $6bn merger plan with fusion power company
Trump Media and Technology Group, owner of the US president’s minnow Truth Social platform, has unveiled an extraordinary merger with TAE Technologies, combining its social media operation with a vast bet on the AI boom driving a surge in energy demand.
What else happened today:
TikTok has signed a deal to sell its US business to three American investors – Oracle, Silver Lake and MGX – ensuring the popular social video platform can continue operating in the US.
Pope Leo XIV has named Ronald Hicks, who endorsed condemning ICE raids, to lead one of biggest US archdioceses in a signal that the church will continue its stance against the Trump administration on immigration.
The Democratic National Committee won’t release a review of its election loss in 2024, saying it would be a “distraction” from helping the party win going forward.
The US would be “lucky” if Trump remained in office for a constitutionally prohibited third term, the White House said following revelations that he discussed the possibility with the lawyer and constitutional scholar Alan Dershowitz.
Catching up? Here’s what happened on 17 December 2025.
