Government trickles open; Epstein saga is back

🎤 Plus: Taylor Swift announces 6-part docuseries

12:30 REPORT 12:30 REPORT Thursday, November 13 | By Cate Martel Today in DC: ☀️ 55°  View Online  |  Sign up It's Thursday. The lights are back on! The federal government is reopening. In today's issue: Government begins to open back up Obstacles in restoring food stamp benefits Dems reach threshold to force Epstein vote Johnson tees up Epstein file vote Taylor Swift announces 6-part docuseries 💡 GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN The government wakes back up: 'What'd I miss?!': AP The federal government is officially open after a record-breaking 43-day shutdown. Well, it's in the process of reopening at least. It will take some time to return to normalcy. ✈️ Almost 1,000 flights were canceled today, the morning after the shutdown ended. 🍎 Restoring food stamp benefits won't happen immediately. 💵 Federal workers are returning to work today — and many will start receiving their missed paychecks starting Saturday. 🏛️ Several Smithsonian museums will reopen on Friday, with the rest opening by Monday. A top Trump economic adviser estimates that roughly 60,000 private sector workers lost their jobs due to the shutdown. Read more on the food stamp delays: 'End of government shutdown won't stop SNAP mayhem' President Trump signed the government funding bill into law late Wednesday after six House Democrats bucked their leadership and voted with Republicans to end the shutdown. The final vote was 222-209. 🔎 The 6 Democrats who voted to end the shutdown The measure passed the Senate earlier in the week in a 60-40 vote. Tidbit from the signing ceremony: NBC's Garrett Haake noted: "After giving an opening statement and signing the bill to reopen the government tonight, President Trump did something unusual: he thanked the press and took zero questions from reporters, who were all ushered quickly from the Oval." 💬 Follow today's live blog ➤ 'THE SECRET MEETING THAT ENDED THE SHUTDOWN': The Wall Street Journal reports "the turning point in the government's longest shutdown didn't involve President Trump or Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. Instead, after the Senate adjourned for the day and most reporters had emptied out of the halls, a small group of breakaway Democrats and an independent slipped unnoticed into the office of Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R., S.D.)." It happened two nights before Halloween. Read the full WSJ report: 'The Secret Meeting That Ended the Shutdown' ➤ A THC BAN WAS TUCKED INTO THE FUNDING BILL: "Popular THC-infused drinks and edibles may disappear from store shelves in the next year as Congress is on the verge of passing a ban on nearly all hemp-derived THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, products," reports The Hill's Nathaniel Weixel. Why?: "Tucked into the Senate-passed government funding bill is a provision that would recriminalize many of the intoxicating hemp-derived products that were legalized by the 2018 farm bill." Read more: 'Hemp-derived THC drinks, edibles could soon disappear because of shutdown bill' ➤ ANOTHER PROVISION THAT HAS ANGERED A LOT OF FOLKS: Senate Republicans quietly included a provision in the bill that ended the shutdown that would allow senators to earn up to $500,000 from litigation challenging the search of their phones as part of former special counsel Jack Smith's Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack probe. Members of both parties in the House are furious, blasting it as "wrong" and "blatantly corrupt." Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said he is "very angry about it," adding that House members "had no idea that was dropped in at the last minute." Johnson said he will try to repeal it, adding House Republicans will introduce a standalone bill to undo the provision and will put it on the "fast track suspension calendar" for next week. It will need two-thirds support in the House to pass the repeal, though it has bipartisan support. 📃 EPSTEIN SAGA RETURNS Buckle up: House Democrats have finally gotten their victory. Immediately after Rep. Adelita Grijalva (D-Ariz.) was sworn in on Wednesday, she became the 218th signature needed to force a vote on the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files. All House Democrats and four House Republicans signed on. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has opted to set up a vote on the Epstein Files Transparency Act next week, essentially ripping the Band-Aid off a vote that neither he nor President Trump wanted. The saga has completely taken over the House. In addition to next week's long-awaited vote, a second major press conference with survivors of Epstein's abuse is also scheduled for next week, per The Hill's Emily Brooks and Rebecca Beitsch. Behind the scenes, the administration had been trying to stop it: Before the discharge petition succeeded, Trump and other administration officials reached out to the handful of key Republicans who signed onto the effort in a bid to stop it. The New York Times reports that Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) was "summoned" to the White House Situation Room on Wednesday to meet with Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel to discuss the release of the files. Plus, a source told The Hill that Trump called Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) on Wednesday morning, but the two played phone tag. Mace told The Hill early Wednesday she would not remove her name from the petition. ➤ WHAT'S IN THE 20K PAGES OF NEWLY RELEASED EPSTEIN DOCS?: The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee released 20,000 pages of emails and documents related to the Epstein case. In one of the emails, the convicted sex offender and disgraced financier says former President Clinton "never" visited his private island. In another email, Epstein calls Trump's business practices "dirty." There were also emails that appear to be with Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, who recently lost his titles of prince and Duke of York. Read more about the emails Plus, via The New York Times: 'What Newly Released Emails Tell Us About Epstein and Trump' ➤ QUICK HITS: — Catholic bishops in the U.S. issued a rare statement to oppose the administration's mass deportation agenda. — The Trump Organization requested a record number of foreign workers in 2025. — Apple rolled out its new Digital ID feature for passports. — A new study shows that all lupus cases may be linked to a common virus. ➤ MORE READS: CNN: 'Things are pretty crappy.' 1 in 4 US households are living paycheck to paycheck The Wall Street Journal: Why It's Easier to Rob a Museum Than a Jewelry Store in France The Atlantic: The Left's New Moralism Will Backfire COMING UP The House and Senate are out. President Trump is in Washington. (All times EST) 1 p.m. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem holds a briefing on TSA agents during the shutdown. 💻 Livestream 2 p.m. Trump and first lady Melania Trump participate in an executive order signing in the East Room. 💻 Livestream 🐝 INTERNET BUZZ 🍚 Celebrate: Today is National Indian Pudding Day.   🎤 'End of an Era': Taylor Swift announced she's releasing a 6-part docuseries behind the scenes of "The Era's Tour." It's called "End of an Era," and it's coming to Disney+ on Dec. 12. 10/10 perfect title, no notes. 📹 Watch her announcement   🧦 This has to be a joke: Apple unveiled a $230 sock for the iPhone. It's getting completely ridiculed online.   🧀 New Cheetos and Doritos that won't dye your fingers orange: PepsiCo Inc. is launching a version of Cheetos and Doritos with no artificial dyes. They're called "Simply NKD." They won't dye your fingers orange, but they say they taste the same.   For what it's worth, Bloomberg's Kristina L. Peterson noted that a "highly scientific Bloomberg newsroom taste test panel had a pretty hard time distinguishing between orange & colorless Cheetos." 👋 AND FINALLY… Because this video made me smile, I thought you should see it, too. Watch this dolphin negotiate its next snack. THE HILL JOBS Interested in exploring a new career? Visit The Hill Jobs Board to discover millions of roles worldwide, including:   Vice President, Communications Strategy — nnkAdvisory - IPAA, Washington, D.C.  Apply   Republican Principal – Federal Government Relations — Winning Strategies Washington, D.C.  Apply Senior Policy Manager — National Cryptocurrency Association, D.C.  Apply Sr. Legislative Representative — The Air Line Pilots Association, International, D.C.  Apply   Click here to get your job mentioned  Stay Engaged  📺 Miss yesterday's newsletter? Catch up with a 1-minute video. I love hearing from you — send your feedback, tips and favorite cookie recipes 🍪 to cmartel@thehill.com. 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