Pam Bondi announced on Friday afternoon that she had assigned Jay Clayton, the interim US attorney for the southern district of New York, to lead the investigation into Donald Trump’s political adversaries and their ties to Jeffrey Epstein, hours after the president directed her to do so.
“Jay Clayton is one of the most capable and trusted prosecutors in the country, and I’ve asked him to take the lead,” the US attorney general said of the lawyer, who also served as chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) during Trump’s first administration. “As with all matters, the department will pursue this with urgency and integrity to deliver answers to the American people.”
The move represents an apparent departure from a July memo issued by the justice department and the FBI that stated officials had found nothing in the Epstein files that warranted the opening of further inquiries. Investigators “did not uncover evidence that could predicate an investigation against uncharged third parties”, the memo said.
Bondi announces investigation into Epstein ties to Trump’s Democratic adversaries
The move comes as Trump has cranked up his intense pressure campaign on congressional Republicans to oppose the full release of the justice department’s files related to Epstein, before a crucial and long-awaited House vote on the matter next week that many Republicans are expected to support.
The bombshell release of scores of Epstein’s emails has shone a spotlight on the president’s long history of involvement with the notorious sex trafficker, including revelations that he knew more about Epstein’s conduct than he has previously let on.
On Friday morning, Trump declared that he would ask the Department of Justice to investigate Epstein’s ties with Democrats, not Republicans, singling out Bill Clinton, Larry Summers and Reid Hoffman. Trump also paradoxically referred to the “Epstein hoax” and called it a “scam”.
Trump says he will take legal action against the BBC, despite its apology
On Friday evening, the US president told reporters aboard Air Force One “we’ll sue them for anywhere between a billion and $5bn, probably sometime next week. We have to do it.”
The BBC sent a personal apology to Trump on Thursday, but said there was no legal basis for him to sue the public broadcaster over a documentary his lawyers called defamatory.
Epstein advised Bannon during 2018 pro-Trump media campaign
The convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein apparently served as a behind-the-scenes adviser to the former Trump official and Maga influencer Steve Bannon during an August 2018 media campaign to defend Trump and his agenda, and to promote Bannon’s media ventures.
Text messages released by the House oversight committee on Wednesday detail a six-day exchange between the men from 17 to 23 August, and show Epstein coaching Bannon on television appearances and political messaging.
US military planning for divided Gaza with ‘green zone’ secured by international and Israeli troops
The US is planning for the long-term division of Gaza into a “green zone” under Israeli and international military control, where reconstruction would start, and a “red zone” to be left in ruins.
Foreign forces will initially deploy alongside Israeli soldiers in the east of Gaza, leaving the devastated strip divided by the current Israeli-controlled “yellow line”, according to US military planning documents seen by the Guardian and sources briefed on American plans.
Georgia prosecutor to take over last remaining criminal case against Trump
The only remaining criminal case against Donald Trump has been revived after the head of Georgia’s prosecutor’s council appointed himself to replace Fani Willis, the Fulton county district attorney, who was removed from the election interference case in September.
Trump reverses course and cuts tariffs on US food imports
Donald Trump moved to lower tariffs on food imports, including beef, tomatoes, coffee and bananas, in an executive order on Friday as the White House fights off growing concerns about rising costs.
The new exemptions take effect retroactively at midnight on Thursday and mark a sharp reversal for Trump, who has long insisted that his import duties are not fueling inflation. They come after a string of victories for Democrats in state and local elections in Virginia, New Jersey and New York City, where affordability was a key topic.
US tariffs on Swiss goods cut to 15% in deal struck with Trump administration
Donald Trump agreed to cut US tariffs on Switzerland from 39% to 15% as part of a new trade pact, lowering duties that strained economic ties and hit Swiss exporters.
The two countries have signed a “non-binding memorandum of understanding”, the Swiss government announced, following bilateral talks in Washington and intense lobbying by Swiss firms.
What else happened today:
Americans should “raise hell” to protect US national parks through the “nightmare” of Donald Trump’s presidency, according to a former National Park Service director.
The head of an antisemitism watchdog has come out against the Anti-Defamation League for its “divisive, hyperbolic and aggressive response” to Zohran Mamdani’s election victory.
A federal bankruptcy court judge on Friday said he would approve OxyContin-maker Purdue Pharma’s latest deal to settle thousands of lawsuits over the toll of opioids that includes some money for thousands of victims of the epidemic.
Catching up? Here’s what happened on 13 November 2025.
