Jeffries targets Patel as 702 vote nears
Plus: DCCC touts voter cf color turnout for VA referendum, DOJ IG to probe Epstein files compliance and AOC to join Pressley in Boston.
FIRST THINGS FIRST
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The House Republican agenda is jam-packed next week as Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) will attempt to move three big-ticket legislative items—a FISA 702 extension, a GOP farm bill and the Senate budget resolution for three years of ICE and CBP funding—across the floor before a scheduled recess during the week of May 4.
Each measure is filled with political landmines that the speaker and his leadership team must navigate to win these votes. The first step is for the bills to clear the Rules Committee on Monday afternoon, which will set up the first procedural fight early next week.
Plus, King Charles III is scheduled to address a joint meeting of Congress next Tuesday during a four-day state visit to the U.S. to mark the 250th anniversary of American independence and strengthen the U.S.-UK relationship. I’ll have much more on the week ahead for paid subscribers in Sunday evening’s edition of Congress Nerd Sunset.
A few more news and notes:
DCCC TOUTS VOTER OF COLOR TURNOUT FOR VA REFERENDUM • The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee released new data showing strong support for the Virginia redistricting referendum among Latino, Black, Asian American and Pacific Islander, and young voters—groups Democrats see as central to their 2026 path.
In a memo circulated on Thursday, the committee highlighted overwhelming backing in majority-Black localities, where the measure passed with roughly two-thirds support, as well as notable overperformance in heavily Latino jurisdictions such as Manassas Park and Manassas City relative to the 2024 presidential margin. Similar gains appeared in AAPI-heavy counties, including Fairfax and Loudoun.
Youth-heavy areas, particularly college towns, also backed the referendum by wide margins.
Democrats argue the results both improve their chances of flipping four Virginia House seats and signal erosion in Republican support among key constituencies that shifted right in 2024—trends they believe could shape competitive races nationwide.
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DOJ IG TO PROBE EPSTEIN FILES COMPLIANCE • The Justice Department’s inspector general has opened an investigation into the agency’s handling of the Epstein files after pressure from the Democratic Women’s Caucus in the latest development of a months-long fight over transparency and survivor protections.
In a notice on Thursday, the Office of Inspector General confirmed it will examine DOJ compliance with the Epstein Files Transparency Act following a January request from 67 DWC members led by Reps. Deborah Ross (D-N.C.) and Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-Calif.).
DWC Chair Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.) said the probe is aimed at what Democrats describe as a flawed and incomplete release process, citing millions of unreleased documents and redactions that they argue exposed victims while shielding perpetrators.
The investigation comes more than four months after the statutory deadline for full disclosure and amid criticism of Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s assertion that the review is complete.
Democrats say the findings could determine whether the department met its legal obligations and shape next steps for congressional oversight.
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AOC TO JOIN PRESSLEY IN BOSTON • Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) is heading to Boston today to join Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) for a State of the Movement fireside chat this evening as the progressive leaders work to energize and organize a grassroots community they say will be pivotal in Democrats’ hopes of winning the House majority in November.
The two will also meet with early childhood educators in Roxbury, linking the visit to education and affordability concerns. It comes as Pressley builds on her successful discharge petition on Temporary Protected Status for Haitians, and as both lawmakers lean into a longer-term effort to shape the party’s direction.
NATIONAL SECURITY
Jeffries targets Patel as 702 vote nears
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) spoke with Speaker Johnson this week about the trust gap between House Democrats and the Trump administration, warning that FBI Director Kash Patel’s leadership of the nation’s top law enforcement agency could dampen Democratic support for a FISA Section 702 extension.
House conservatives remain reluctant to extend the government’s surveillance powers without changes, including a warrant requirement for searches involving Americans tied to foreign targets and a ban on a central bank digital currency. With whip problems on his right flank and Jeffries declining to guarantee Democratic votes amid concerns about one of the administration’s most controversial figures, Johnson faces a narrow and uncertain path forward with the FISA provision set to expire in a week.
“We recognize that in the abstract, [702] is an important tool to help keep the American people safe from foreign terrorist actors. At the same period of time, there is zero reason for us to trust Kash Patel,” Jeffries told reporters on Thursday morning. “Why is he still around as the FBI director? He is clearly and deeply flawed and unqualified, and many Republicans know it.”
The Brooklyn Democrat pointed to a New York Times report this week that the FBI scrutinized one of its reporters after she published a story about Patel’s girlfriend, raising fresh concerns about the bureau’s independence and press freedom.
According to the report, agents searched internal databases for information on reporter Elizabeth Williamson. They explored whether her reporting could violate federal stalking laws after she wrote about FBI resources being used to provide security and travel support to Patel’s girlfriend, Alexis Wilkins.
But the inquiry appears to have gone beyond a routine threat response. While the FBI interviewed Wilkins after she received a threat, officials also recommended pursuing a deeper investigation into the reporter, a step that the Justice Department ultimately halted. No charges were filed, but the episode has triggered backlash. The Times leadership called it a potential First Amendment violation, and some DOJ officials reportedly viewed the probe as retaliatory.
“As long as he’s still around as the FBI director, particularly with the most recent disclosures that he’s weaponizing the bureau of the FBI not to keep the American people safe, not to protect us from terrorism, not to go after narco-traffickers, but to go after perceived political adversaries, we’re going to continue to make clear that Kash Patel’s continued presence as the FBI director, is going to make bipartisan common ground on the FISA 702 question extremely difficult,” Jeffries added.
Patel isn’t the only top Trump administration official to receive Jeffries’ ire this week after the Pentagon abruptly pushed out Navy Secretary John Phelan in the wake of escalating clashes with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and other Pentagon leaders, especially over shipbuilding policy and control of major defense programs.
Phelan had already been losing authority internally, with senior officials shifting key responsibilities away from him. The breaking point came amid frustrations with his pace on the administration’s shipbuilding push and broader tensions with Hegseth’s leadership style. There was also an ongoing ethics investigation into Phelan’s office, which added to the pressure surrounding his tenure.
Hegseth replaced him with Hung Cao as acting Navy secretary, marking the first service secretary removal under Trump this term and part of a wider purge of senior military leadership.
“Pete Hegseth is a complete and total disgrace at this point, and the mismanagement at the Department of Defense is extraordinary,” Jeffries said. “We’ve lost so many talented, patriotic, skilled, high-ranking officials within our military, and the departure of the Secretary of the Navy is the most recent example by all accounts.”
Jeffries blasted Hegseth for firing Phelan in retaliation for dissent, arguing the move came at a precarious moment as the U.S. faces a deteriorating situation in the Middle East. He also blamed President Trump for what he described as a costly and misguided conflict with Iran, while arguing Iran’s control of the Strait of Hormuz has given it strategic leverage, as Americans are bearing the consequences through rising gas prices.
The Democratic leader’s attacks on Patel and Hegseth follow a familiar pattern of isolating controversial administration figures, elevating specific incidents, and applying sustained political pressure to force accountability or removal. He has used the same approach with former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem over a mass deportation operation tied to the deaths of two U.S. citizens and former Attorney General Pam Bondi over her handling of the Epstein files.
If Johnson is unable to stitch together a coalition to pass a 702 extension in the House, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) is ready to jump ahead of the speaker. Before the Senate adjourned for the weekend, Thune took the first step toward advancing a clean three-year extension that, if passed, would shift the dynamic from an open-ended House negotiation to a take-it-or-leave-it scenario.
Johnson would no longer be shaping his own bill. He’d be deciding whether to put the Senate product on the floor—with limited room to accommodate conservative demands like a warrant requirement—and under intense pressure to force his conference in line or risk being blamed for letting 702 expire.
“If they can’t come together behind something, then, yeah, we’re prepared to move here,” Thune told me this week.