President Trump is still facing calls from his supporters to release more information about Jeffrey Epstein's crimes, death and the famous people who associated with him. Mr. Trump, meanwhile, is trying to move on. Scott MacFarlane reports.

New York

President Trump is encountering persistent demands from his supporters to disclose additional details about Jeffrey Epstein's crimes, death, and connections with prominent individuals. The issue has gained traction among Republican voters and community members, with some expressing frustration over the lack of transparency and the administration's unfulfilled promises.

Despite the ongoing interest, Trump has criticized his supporters for focusing on the Epstein controversy, calling them 'weaklings' and insisting there is no conspiracy to uncover. Top officials in the Justice Department, including the FBI Deputy Director and Attorney General, have declined to comment on the matter, maintaining a low profile as public calls for information continue.

Trump urging supporters to stop talking about Epstein

Now to the story so many Republicans are talking about, and the president wishes they would not. That would be Jeffrey Epstein and their demands that the administration keep its promise to release information about his crimes, his death, and the famous people who associated with him. Scott McFarland has all that. Frederick County, Maryland is a speck of politically moderate purple America, where downtown is filled with Civil War markers and tiny shops. Ambassador Tim May, who hosts a community radio show on WFMD, says he's struck by how many people are talking about a controversy that began nowhere near here. I would think this is about the least important thing in our lives. Everything from local economy to elections. But they keep calling. They keep calling. And they keep it alive. This afternoon, the calls from local listeners, who usually listen for updates on high school football or city government, talked about Jeffrey Epstein. It's time to move on and just be upfront about why you're not ready. If you're not going to release it, just be upfront about why you're not releasing it. It's human nature. You want to know what's behind the curtain. Before taking office, Trump's allies, including his now attorney general and FBI director, fueled conspiracy theories to galvanize voters about Epstein's death in prison. Epstein was jailed in 2019 for sex trafficking. The thing I think President Trump should run on, on day one, roll out the black book. Epstein spent time with powerful figures in finance and politics. Conspiracy theorists believe there's a paper trail connecting them to Epstein and their own sex crimes against children. I call it the Epstein hoax. Over the past 48 hours, President Trump has blasted his own supporters, calling them weaklings for focusing on the controversy, arguing there's no there there, no conspiracy. They're wasting their time with a guy who obviously has some very serious problems. Epstein's popularity appears only to have inflamed the controversy, including among his own supporters, like Stephen Taylor from Western Pennsylvania, who wants the Epstein files released. We put you in office. You ran on this platform. You offered it. We didn't ask for it. And now we want it. We demand it. And in a rarity in the Trump era, the issue has unified allies and critics. And purple America, who want to hear more. Jeffrey Epstein is what we're talking about. And we want your call. Though Epstein is a point of conversation in communities big and small, Trump's top surrogates in the Justice Department have kept a lower profile this week, including FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino and Attorney General Pam Bondi, who declined multiple times yesterday to answer questions about the Epstein case. All right. Maurice, Scott McFarlane, thank you so much.

The Senate approved a $9.4 billion rescissions request, sending it back to the House of Representatives for approval.

Washington

Senate approves spending cuts to foreign aid, public broadcasting

Israel has faced international condemnation over its three days of airstrikes in Syria. The European Union and the United Nations have called for a return to calm, while Iran has urged countries in the region to respond against Israel.

Damascus

Middle East Conflict

World reacts to Israeli attacks on Syria’s Damascus

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz makes his first state visit to the United Kingdom to sign a historic defence cooperation treaty—the first of its kind between Germany and Britain since the Second World War. The agreement includes plans for joint defence efforts, boosting economic collaboration, and tackling illegal migration.

London

Germany and UK seal historic defence pact

Donald Trump says American-made weapons bought by NATO are being shipped to Ukraine. Trump's also threatening sanctions, saying his aim is to force Putin to negotiate an end to the war. But with Ukraine under nightly attack, there’s scepticism over whether he'll achieve anything.

Kyiv

Ukraine Invasion

U.S. ships NATO purchased Patriot missiles to Ukraine

Syria condemns Israel for fatal strikes on several government buildings in Damascus. The escalation threatens to disrupt new U.S.-brokered security talks between Israel and Syria, with both sides expressing concerns over stability in the region.

Israeli airstrikes on Syria threaten security talks

U.S. President Donald Trump is still dealing with fallout from his own supporters over his administration's handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files. CBS News Department of Justice reporter Jake Rosen has more.

Trump says Epstein conspiracy theory is hoax started by Democrats

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said that she spoke with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and that the two had agreed to strengthen trade collaboration, particularly in light of the tariffs from U.S. President Donald Trump set to go in effect on August 1.

Mexico City

Global Tariffs

Mexico plans to strengthen trade with Canada

Former President Barack Obama joined his wife, former first lady Michelle Obama, on her latest podcast episode with her brother Craig Robinson to address divorce rumors.

Obamas address divorce rumors on Michelle’s podcast

Israel struck Syrian military targets as well as central Damascus on Wednesday (July 16) as it continued its campaign to protect Druze minority communities in southern Syria.

Israel strikes Damascus as fighting rages in southern Syria

U.S. ambassador Mike Huckabee's appearance at Benjamin Netanyahu’s corruption trial follows President Trump's call for Israel to throw out the case or pardon the Israeli prime minister.

Tel Aviv-Yafo

U.S. ambassador attends Netanyahu trial to show support from Trump

President Donald Trump on Tuesday said the U.S. would impose a 19% tariff on goods from Indonesia under a new agreement with the Southeast Asian country and more deals were in the works as he continued to press for what he views as better terms with trading partners.

Trump eyes more trade deals soon as EU readies retaliation

At least 20 Palestinians were killed on Wednesday (July 16) at an aid distribution site run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, in what the U.S.-backed group said was a crowd surge instigated by armed agitators. This video contains graphic images.

Jerusalem

Crush at Gaza aid site kills at least 20, GHF blames agitators

Police in Los Angeles have arrested a 22-year-old suspect in the double homicide of American Idol executive Robin Kaye and her husband, Thomas Deluca. The couple, both 70 years old, was found shot to death in their home earlier this week.

Encino

Police make arrest in murders of American Idol executive, husband

Streaming shows dominated nominations for the 2025 Emmy Awards. "Severance" earned the most series nominations with 27. Meanwhile, "The Studio" earned the most-ever nominations for a debut comedy series with 23.

Hollywood

'Severance' and 'The Studio' earn top Emmy nominations

The United Torah Judaism party has decided to quit Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's ruling coalition over its failure to secure military service exemptions. Members of the ultra-orthodox community have been exempted from enlisting in the army since 1948.

Major cracks in Netanyahu coalition as ultra-Orthodox party quits

New information about the Jeffrey Epstein case may soon be made public after a reversal from U.S. President Donald Trump and weeks of criticism — the loudest of which has come from within the MAGA movement.

Epstein files may be released after Trump reversal

Russia's Vladimir Putin has rejected President Trump's ultimatum for Moscow to sign a ceasefire deal with Ukraine in the next 50 days. Trump has threatened to issue a 100% tariff on any country that does business with Russia if no ceasefire deal is reached.

Moscow

Russia rejects Trump's ultimatum for ceasefire in Ukraine

Fighting has erupted in the southern Syrian city of As Suwayda just six hours after a ceasefire was announced. Earlier on Tuesday, Syrian government forces withdrew heavy vehicles from the city, hoping to ease tensions.

As Suwayda

Fighting erupts in Syria’s As Suwayda hours after ceasefire deal

Two laptops and hard drives containing watermarked and unreleased music by Beyoncé were stolen from her choreographer’s rental car in Atlanta, according to police.

Atlanta

Unreleased Beyoncé music stolen from choreographer’s rental car

The House Committee on Education and Workforce is holding its ninth hearing in 18 months on antisemitism on college campuses. CBS News' Shanelle Kaul has more details.

Anger at House committee hearing on antisemitism in college campuses

An Air India Boeing airplane crashed in northwestern India in June, killing all people on board but one passenger. India's aviation regulator has now ordered airlines to examine fuel control switches on several Boeing models.

New Delhi

India orders airlines to inspect Boeing airplane models after crash

Controversy on Capitol Hill over the so-called Epstein Files is seemingly not going away anytime soon.

House Republicans block Democratic push to release Epstein documents

An Israeli scheme to move hundreds of thousands of already uprooted Palestinians to a so-called "humanitarian city" in Gaza has led politicians to spar with the defense establishment. Critics inside and outside Israel have denounced the proposal.

Critics slam Israeli scheme to move Gazans to 'humanitarian city'

At least two people were killed in a New Jersey flash flooding event, Gov. Phil Murphy said Tuesday morning as heavy rains are expected to continue battering the Northeast. CBS News' Rob Marciano has more details.

New Jersey

Two killed in New Jersey flash flooding

After over a week of negotiations in Doha, a truce in Gaza remains elusive, despite intensified efforts by mediators. The stalemate continues as both Hamas and Israel trade blame over ongoing strikes.

Doha

Gaza truce still out of reach after Doha talks

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday cleared the way for President Donald Trump's administration to resume dismantling the Department of Education, part of his bid to shrink the federal government's role in education in favor of more control by the states.

U.S. Supreme Court clears way for Trump to gut Education Department

Syria's government troops entered the Sweida region following deadly clashes on Tuesday, while Israel carried out strikes against them, saying it was acting to protect the Druze minority.

Syrian forces enter Sweida city following deadly clashes

Heavy rains slammed the Northeast and caused flash floods in the New York City subway system. CBS News' Rob Marciano has the latest.

Flash flooding pummels NYC and slams subway lines

US President Donald Trump told Russia to end its war in Ukraine within 50 days or face massive new economic sanctions, as he laid out plans for infusions of weaponry for Kyiv via NATO. "We're going to be doing very severe tariffs if we don't have a deal in 50 days, tariffs at about 100 percent," Trump said.

Trump gives Moscow 50-day ultimatum over Ukraine war

A Gaza-bound boat carrying pro-Palestinian activists and humanitarian aid left Sicily, over a month after Israel detained and deported people aboard a previous vessel.

Breakdown