As President Donald Trump nears the end of the first six months of his second term in the White House, Democrats and media appear to be scrambling for a foothold — a narrative that will stick and give them all something to rally around — but nothing seems to be working.
For those who don’t spend their Sunday mornings glued to the television — and their Sunday afternoons attempting to dig through a week’s worth of network and cable news media spin — The Daily Wire has compiled a short summary of what you may have missed.
The walls are not closing in. The Big Beautiful Bill has passed. The border is more secure than it has been in decades. The dire predictions have not materialized. The Trump administration, as James Carville predicted in February, did not implode in the next 30 days. The United States is not at the center of World War III and has not been plunged into an endless recession. And with no clear winning issue to grab onto, Democrats and media spent Sunday morning — one year to the day after a would-be assassin failed to end President Trump’s life — grasping at straws.
On ABC’s “This Week,” capitalizing on reported tensions between Trump Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel and FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino, anchor Jonathan Karl questioned whether the Justice Department’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case would drive a wedge between Trump and some of his most prominent supporters.
Many seemed unimpressed with the administration’s final assessment — that Epstein had taken his own life, had not been involved in blackmail schemes, and had no “client list” — and pushed back, calling for Bondi’s resignation or firing. Reports quickly began circulating that Bongino had said he could not stay on if Bondi did, creating what Karl described as an “uproar that has pitted the leaders of the DOJ and the FBI and possibly the president himself against some of the most prominent voices in the MAGA movement.”
The Trump administration’s handling of the Epstein investigation has created an “uproar that has pitted the leaders of the DOJ and the FBI and possibly the president himself against some of the most prominent voices in the MAGA movement,” @JonKarl reports. https://t.co/Nz5ssrfvW3 pic.twitter.com/t81XpZKrwB
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) July 13, 2025
CNN’s “State of the Union” also latched on to the tensions within the DOJ and the FBI over the Epstein case. Bernie Sanders adviser Faiz Shakir blamed Trump — who had long promised to get to the bottom of the Epstein case and release whatever information he found — for the tension.
“I would say to Donald Trump, you wound this up. You caused this. And I think I’m on the side of these right-wing influencers who say, hey, if you want to be a paragon of virtue and say you want to take on the powerful, and Epstein… release them unredacted,” he said.
.@fshakir: “I would say to Donald Trump, you wound this up. You caused this. And I think I’m on the side of these right-wing influencers who say, hey, if you want to be a paragon of virtue and say you want to take on the powerful, and Epstein… release them unredacted.”… pic.twitter.com/EbkdhUmof2
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) July 13, 2025
More and more Democrats have called for any and all Epstein documents to be released, despite the fact that Democrats were the ones who blocked Republican attempts to get some of the documents – in particular, flight logs — released during former President Joe Biden’s term in office.
In case the Epstein-related drama failed to pan out, they tried a few other topics as well.
Karl asked about tariffs — set to take effect in short order for nations that have not yet come to the table and worked out mutually beneficial arrangements.
“These tariffs are real, if the president doesn’t get a deal that he thinks is good enough,” White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett said. “Conversations are ongoing and we’ll see where the dust settles.”
White House’s Kevin Hassett on Pres. Trump announcing new tariffs during trade negotiations: “These tariffs are real, if the president doesn’t get a deal that he thinks is good enough.”
“Conversations are ongoing and we’ll see where the dust settles.” https://t.co/TSyrYidwZw pic.twitter.com/cbwk6p5mIr
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) July 13, 2025
And finally, Karl turned to the Russia-Ukraine War amid reports that Trump had soured on Russian President Vladimir Putin as it became clear that he was not serious about negotiating peace.
“At a minimum, Trump has been personally embarrassed, you could argue, by how Putin has strung him along,” The New Yorker’s Susan Glasser suggested.
“At a minimum, Trump has been personally embarrassed, you could argue, by how Putin has strung him along.”
The New Yorker’s Susan Glasser joins @JonKarl to discuss Pres. Trump’s “striking shift in tone” about the Russian leader. https://t.co/S94HKc2RkX pic.twitter.com/maDnsVEEoq
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) July 13, 2025
Meanwhile, Trump ally Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) argued on CBS News’ “Face the Nation” that Trump was getting ready to move on Russia — and although he would not give away the game, he said, “I don’t want to get ahead of the president, but stay tuned about seized assets. The Europeans want to limit the interest on the assets to go to Ukraine. Secretary Bessent wants to go further. Stay tuned about a plan to go after the seized assets more aggressively. Stay tuned for a plan where America will begin to sell to our European allies a tremendous amount of weapons that can benefit Ukraine.”
Back on CNN, anchor Dana Bash brought in Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA) to discuss recent immigration raids — where he claimed that he would likely be profiled and targeted in a raid because of the way he looked.
.@SenAlexPadilla responds to @RealTomHoman on ICE detention tactics: “They’re going based on appearance. His words, not mine… What if I was outside of Home Depot, because I like to do some work around the house not dressed in a suit? Would I be a target of ICE enforcement under… pic.twitter.com/Ug98q2qjcs
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) July 13, 2025
NBC News’ “Meet the Press” went an entirely different direction, and host Kristen Welker opted to interview Governor — and potential 2028 presidential candidate — Andy Beshear (D-KY).
Gov. Andy Beshear (D-Ky.) tells Meet the Press he wants to show that America “can actually move not right, or left, but forward as a country,” as he faces speculation about a potential presidential bid in 2028. https://t.co/HnJsCQj2tT pic.twitter.com/0noebD7bA7
— Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) July 13, 2025
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