Good afternoon.
Donald Trump faces the prospect of a politically damaging congressional vote over the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files. Trump reportedly failed in his attempts to pressure two female Republican representatives to remove their names from a petition to force a vote, leaving him exposed on an issue that could turn segments of his base against him.
It comes after the latest release of emails written by Epstein, one of which shows an exchange between the late financier and an associate where they discuss “girls” and travel. The emails have also cast further doubt on Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s account of when he cut ties with the child sex offender and his denials about meeting his accuser, Virginia Giuffre.
Top news
Multiple ACT schools shut after alert over asbestos in coloured sand products
Molly Ticehurst’s ex-boyfriend pleads guilty to 2024 murder that ignited national anti-DV campaign
Two hours a night: Japan PM’s sleep schedule prompts concerns about work-life balance
In pictures
France has paid tribute to the 130 people killed in 2015 during a rampage by Islamic State gunmen and suicide bombers targeting cafes, restaurants and the Bataclan concert hall. The attacks were the deadliest on French soil since the second world war and prompted emergency security measures, many of which are now embedded in law.
What they said …
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“I’m definitely team orca, all day, every day. But once that seal was on the boat, I kind of turned [into] team seal” – Charvet Drucker
A wildlife photographer on a whale-watching trip in waters off Seattle captured dramatic video and photos of a pod of killer whales hunting a seal that survived only by jumping on to her boat.
Full Story
Newsroom edition: is Labor doing enough to solve the housing crisis?
Prices are going up at the fastest rate in almost four years and, as more Australians are being locked out of the market, many are struggling to pay the rent.
Bridie Jabour talks to Guardian Australia’s head of newsroom, Mike Ticher, deputy editor, Patrick Kennelly, and national news editor, Josephine Tovey, about whether the government has found the right solutions.
Before bed read
“This week the National Liberal Coalition has rewound the clock a decade,” writes Prof Tim Flannery after the opposition abandoned its net zero emissions target. He urges the Albanese government not to cut deals on its new nature laws “with the same climate deniers who dismantled Australia’s climate ambition last time”.
Daily word game
Today’s starter word is: VAC. You have five goes to get the longest word including the starter word. Play Wordiply.
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