00:00President Trump calls it a trap, urging Republicans not to fall for the Epstein file dump, as pressure builds to release them all.
00:09Plus, is the U.S. about to strike Venezuela? New reporting this morning, the president now has military options on the table.
00:16And 10,000 thank yous, why some TSA workers just got bonus checks for showing up.
00:24The stories that matter, clear and credible, from across the country to around the world, these are your unbiased updates from Straight Arrow News.
00:36Good morning, I'm Craig DeGrelli.
00:38President Trump is calling the new release of the Jeffrey Epstein files a trap, saying Democrats are using it to distract from the government shutdown.
00:46The House Oversight Committee dropped 20,000 emails and texts from the convicted sex offender, renewing calls to make all Epstein files public.
00:54One email stands out. Epstein claiming Trump, quote, knew about the girls.
00:59The president blasting that is false, and the document dump as a hoax.
01:03On Truth Social, Trump wrote that Democrats will do anything at all to deflect on how badly they've done on the shutdown.
01:10He warned Republicans not to, quote, fall into that trap, adding there should be no deflections to Epstein or anything else, and any Republicans involved should be focused only on opening up our country.
01:22But this fight isn't going away.
01:24The House will be forced to vote as early as next week on whether to release all Epstein files after Arizona Democrat Adelita Grijalva gave a bipartisan petition its 218th signature.
01:35House Speaker Mike Johnson confirmed he will bring it to the floor earlier than expected.
01:40A shift in strategy, sources tell CNN, came after GOP leaders realized the vote could not be stopped.
01:46Republicans now expect dozens of their own members to defy President Trump and back the bill from Congressman Thomas Massey and Ro Khanna,
01:54which would force the Justice Department to release all remaining Epstein files.
01:58According to CNN, the White House was briefed ahead of time, and Trump was told Johnson planned to move forward.
02:05One official said the President, quote, understands this is an inevitable reality.
02:11New developments this morning in the Trump administration's escalating standoff with Venezuela.
02:16CBS News was first to report that President Trump has been briefed on updated military options, including possible strikes on land,
02:24according to multiple sources familiar with the high-level White House meeting on Wednesday.
02:29ABC News later confirmed that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs Chairman Dan Cain led the briefing,
02:35which included a range of options, from no action at all to targeted airstrikes on seaports, airports, and military facilities.
02:43The discussions come as the USS Gerald Ford, the world's largest aircraft carrier, has arrived in the region under U.S. Southern command.
02:51The Ford joins a flotilla of destroyers, warplanes, and special operations forces, boosting U.S. troop strength in Latin America to about 15,000.
03:01Defense officials say Trump has been weighing his options for weeks, but no final decision has been made.
03:07The briefing follows two months of U.S. strikes against vessels the Pentagon claims were ferrying drugs from South America.
03:14Strikes that have killed at least 80 alleged drug traffickers.
03:17The White House and Pentagon declined comment on the briefing, first reported by CBS.
03:22The longest government shutdown in U.S. history may have ended, but its impacts are still rippling across the country.
03:29Even though President Trump signed the legislation to reopen the government Wednesday night, getting back to normal is taking time.
03:36The airlines canceled more than 1,000 flights Thursday and hundreds more today as airports struggled to recover from weeks of staff shortages.
03:44The FAA had ordered a 6% reduction in flights at the nation's busiest airports during the shutdown,
03:50and officials say that limit will stay in place until systems can safely return to normal.
03:56Meanwhile, more than 1.4 million federal workers who went unpaid for 43 days are still waiting to be made whole.
04:03The White House says some paychecks will land Sunday, but most won't arrive until midweek and only include base pay from October 1st through November 1st.
04:13Over time, bonuses and the rest of their back pay won't come until the next pay period.
04:18Millions who rely on SNAP benefits are also waiting.
04:21Some states, like Georgia and Illinois, won't finish paying out November benefits until next week,
04:27while more than a dozen states still have not confirmed a timeline.
04:31Same topic now. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is handing out $10,000 bonus checks to TSA officers who worked through the government shutdown.
04:41At a news conference in Houston, Noem personally delivered the first checks to about 20 agents at George Bush Intercontinental Airport,
04:49saying the payments recognized those who, quote, stepped up, took extra shifts, and showed up each and every day.
04:56The bonuses come just days after President Trump recommended the same $10,000 reward for air traffic controllers
05:03who never missed a shift during the 43-day shutdown, the longest in U.S. history.
05:08In a post on X, Noem thanked DHS employees for their dedication and resilience throughout what she called the Democrats' shutdown,
05:16writing, your continued work and dedication to protecting our homeland are a testament to your patriotism.
05:22The Department of Homeland Security says the bonuses will be paid using carryover funds from last year's budget.
05:28No word yet on how many TSA employees will receive them.
05:32We have liftoff, and what a sight it was. You've got to see this.
05:36Blue Origin, founded by Amazon's Jeff Bezos, just launched its massive new Glenn rocket,
05:42carrying twin NASA satellites headed for Mars.
06:16This was the scene Thursday afternoon at Cape Canaveral.
06:19Blue Origin employees erupting as the rocket blasted off.
06:23The 321-foot-tall New Glenn, powered by seven methane-burning engines, is now officially on its maiden flight.
06:31About 30 minutes after liftoff, the escape probes separated from the booster, beginning their year-long looping journey to Mars.
06:39They'll study how solar wind and radiation strip away the planet's atmosphere,
06:44clues to what made the red planet barren.
06:47Blue Origin says the rocket's reusable booster will be towed back to Port Canaveral for refurbishing,
06:52and prepped for future missions.
06:55Scientists note that launch windows to Mars open every two years,
06:59when Earth and Mars align just right, making direct travel possible with today's rockets.
07:05Finally this morning, we're turning the tables.
07:11You had questions on some of our YouTube videos, and we're putting them to the test.
07:16This is Straight From You, where we fact-check claims and add context where things get a bit murky.
07:21Starting with the story in the news pretty often over the past few weeks, SNAP benefits.
07:26This viewer commented, just shy of 60% of SNAP beneficiaries are not even Americans.
07:33That number is making the rounds, but it's not true.
07:36By law, SNAP benefits go to American citizens, and specific, lawfully present non-citizens,
07:43most of whom have to wait five years before qualifying.
07:46And a new USDA memo just made those rules even tighter.
07:50Under the guidance that took effect October 31st, states can issue food aid only to citizens,
07:56nationals, lawful permanent residents, Cuban and Haitian entrants,
08:00and citizens whose countries have a pact with the U.S. government, not broad humanitarian programs.
08:07States have to verify that through a DHS database, known as SAVE, and apply it for new applicants right away.
08:15There's a bigger debate behind all of this, how much public assistance immigrants actually use.
08:21Some studies focus on households with young children getting WIC or SNAP.
08:26Others, looking person-to-person nationwide, show immigrants receive less in total welfare
08:32and in title benefits than U.S.-born residents.
08:35Different lenses, different headlines.
08:38Bottom line, eligibility is tightening, and the 60% claim doesn't match the data.
08:43We'll keep tracking how the rule change plays out and what it means for families, grocers, and state budgets.
08:49All right, here's another viewer question.
08:51Why do 70,000 ICE slash DHS get paid during a shutdown but air traffic controllers and our military do not?
09:00Very good question, right?
09:01All right, here's the short version why.
09:03DHS had flexible funding that Congress gave it over the summer.
09:08That allowed about 70,000 officers, including ICE, CBP, the Secret Service, and federal air marshals, to keep getting paid, including a lump supercheck on October 22nd.
09:20TSA screeners at airports were not included.
09:23They had to wait.
09:25The Pentagon managed one paycheck by moving $6.6 billion in unused research money.
09:31But lawmakers warned it couldn't do that again if the shutdown dragged on.
09:35Everyone else?
09:36Thousands of federal employees worked without pay until Congress struck a deal to reopen the government on November 12th.
09:43That plan fully funds some departments, keeps others going through January 30th,
09:48and guarantees back pay once agencies verify hours worked.
09:52Different agencies, different pots of money.
09:55And that's why some checks kept coming while others did not.
09:59Hey, keep those questions coming on our Straight Arrow News YouTube page.
10:02We love seeing your comments.
10:03And next week, we'll tackle a few more of the biggest ones.
10:06By the way, with the fastest, fairest few minutes of news, be sure to tell your friends about us.
10:11You can always watch us on SAN.com or our app, or stream us on Spotify.
10:16Those are your unbiased updates for this Friday.
10:18We'll see you back here on Monday.
10:19For all of us here at Straight Arrow News, I'm Craig DiGrelli.
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