Mollusk Mania

Good afternoon. This is the Final NOTUS newsletter for July 2, 2026. You can get it in your inbox every day by signing up here— it’s free!

THE LATEST

Happy National Scallops Day, the new holiday that President Donald Trump emphatically declared after opening the waters off Cape Cod to harvesting of the tasty mollusks.

Federal prosecutors finally secured a grand jury indictment against David Hearn, the Olympic canoeist who became the administration’s public enemy No. 1 after he reached into the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool and touched the peeling lining.

• U.S. Attorney for D.C. Jeanine Pirro called his actions “an affront to the dignity of our shared history.”

Today is the deadline for the Trump administration to release more Epstein files, as ordered by a federal judge last week. The DOJ plans to file by deadline, an official told NOTUS Thursday at 4:30 p.m.

THE ADMINISTRATION

OpenAI has proposed giving the U.S. government a 5% stake in the company, advancing an idea CEO Sam Altman has been discussing with the president since his second term began.

Medicare intends to reduce payments to hospitals for routine imaging services like X-rays or ultrasounds, per a proposed rule released today. It would pay similarly to what it pays doctor’s offices for the same services.

Social Security cards for babies born through the rest of this year will be stamped with Trump’s Freedom 250 logo.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth bristled at “ingrates” who were protesting his appearance at an event celebrating the administration’s public safety efforts.

The FBI is directing hundreds of analysts from field offices across the country to dig into Georgia election probe subjects.

Puerto Rico has not received most of the money allocated to recovery efforts — amounting to billions in unspent funding — after Hurricane Maria, a Government Accountability Office audit found.

THE HILL

A House Ethics letter says the committee does not handle nor have information about sexual harassment settlement payments — but it supports the release of such information.

House GOP exasperation over the SAVE America Act continues through recess: Florida Rep. Anna Paulina Luna today issued another warning to her Senate colleagues that no legislation will pass without SAVE components passing first.

• “1,000%, the rule will go down unless you attach the SAVE America Act. I don’t care who in this chamber hates me for it,” she posted, later adding: “P.S. I’m not the only one.”

THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL

Tucker Carlson plans to launch a new political party after breaking with Trump and the GOP earlier this year.

SHARING IS CARING

Thank you for reading! Today’s newsletter was produced by Kelly Poe and Erik Schutz. If you liked it, please forward it to a friend. If someone shared it with you, please sign up — it’s free! Got a tip or comments to share? Email us at finalnotus@notus.com.