Barney Frank, former Massachusetts congressman and gay rights advocate, dies at 86
Committee chairman Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) speaks during a House Financial Services Committee hearing on Capitol Hill February 24, 2010 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Brendan Smialowski/Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — Barney Frank, the former Massachusetts congressman who championed Wall Street reform and served as one of the first openly gay members of Congress, has died at 86, sources told ABC News.
The former U.S. representative served as chairman of the powerful House Financial Services Committee from 2007 to 2011 and was a leading co-sponsor of the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act, which was enacted in response to the 2008 financial crisis.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Pam Bondi testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on October 07, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Win Mcnamee/Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — After a top Democrat introduced a resolution to hold former Attorney General Pam Bondi in civil contempt, a GOP spokesperson for the House Oversight Committee said Bondi will appear on May 29 for a deposition as part of the panel’s Jeffrey Epstein investigation.
Rep. Robert Garcia, the committee’s top Democrat, on Wednesday morning introduced a resolution to hold Bondi in civil contempt for failing to comply with a subpoena.
“Just a few minutes ago, we filed official contempt charges against Pam Bondi,” Garcia announced to reporters at the Capitol.
Moments later, a House Oversight Committee spokesperson said that “former Attorney General Pam Bondi is appearing on May 29. We will have more details to share later.”
Garcia applauded the news as he spoke to reporters.
“Clearly, we’re being effective, because it’s interesting how only when we take action and when we actually have to force Republicans to do anything, to call subpoenas, to get in front of our committee that they actually ever do anything,” he said.
“So, I am so glad that Chairman [James] Comer is scared of this group back here, and then we’ll continue to push every single time,” Garcia continued. “So, that’s great to hear. If that’s the truth. I’m glad he told him he made that announcement today.”
Bondi had been expected to testify behind closed doors on April 14 pursuant to the committee’s bipartisan subpoena. But after she was removed from her role by President Donald Trump, the Justice Department said the subpoena no longer obligated her testimony in the Epstein matter.
Bondi’s handling of the Epstein documents and the Justice Department’s compliance with the Epstein Transparency Act was a point of bipartisan criticism, and stoked frustration within the Trump administration.
Garcia’s civil contempt effort, if successful, would elevate the matter to a federal court where a judge would be tasked with deciding whether Bondi is legally obligated to comply with the subpoena.
According to the Congressional Research Service, civil contempt allows Congress to “seek a civil judgment from a federal court declaring that the individual in question is legally obligated to comply with the congressional subpoena.”
In January, the GOP-controlled House Oversight Committee voted to hold former President Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton in criminal contempt. The Clintons ultimately agreed to testify, and Republicans dropped the contempt effort.
Comer has depositions scheduled with several other witnesses in the probe through June, prolonging the committee’s Epstein investigation into the summer.
Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch speaks with ABC News Live anchor Linsey Davis on ‘All Access.’ (ABC News)
(WASHINGTON) — Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch responded publicly to personal attacks by President Donald Trump in an interview with ABC News Live Prime anchor Linsey Davis, suggesting he is determined to remain “independent” and “fearless” in fulfilling his duty despite harsh criticism from the president who appointed him.
After Gorsuch voted with Chief Justice John Roberts, Justice Amy Coney Barrett and the court’s three liberals to invalidate Trump’s sweeping global tariffs in February, the president lashed out at his nominees Gorsuch and Barrett, calling them a “disgrace,” “disloyal,” “unpatriotic,” “fools and lapdogs,” and “an embarrassment to their families.”
Gorsuch told Davis the comments prompted him to reflect on the ideals enshrined in the Declaration of Independence.
“We want independent judges, people who are fearless and able to apply the law without respect to persons, as our judicial oath says, right? That’s why we’re giving life [tenure] to anybody, and it’s quite an honor,” Gorsuch said when asked for his reaction to Trump. “It’s a humbling privilege to be able to serve in this capacity, and I’m just one link in a long chain.”
Gorsuch, who rarely does media interviews, spoke with ABC News ahead of publication of a new children’s book, “Heroes of 1776: The Story of the Declaration of Independence,” officially released Tuesday.
“We tell the story about the debate that led up to [the Declaration]. It almost didn’t go through,” the justice said of the nation’s founding charter, penned 250 years ago this year. “None of this is inevitable, and it isn’t inevitable that it will survive. America’s biggest enemy is itself. I believe we have to recommit every generation … if we’re going to carry those ideals forward.”
Even before he was confirmed in 2017, Gorsuch was forced to respond to extraordinary attacks on the federal judiciary by a sitting president, after Trump in his first term targeted judges who blocked controversial policies. Then-Judge Gorsuch described Trump’s behavior as “disheartening” and “demoralizing.”
Now, the conservative justice, 58, who will mark a decade on the high court bench next year, said he shares Roberts’ concern that a surge in personal attacks against judges is “dangerous,” even if intense criticism can be fair game.
“Part of the job of the judge is to accept criticism. Right? Everybody’s got a right to free speech,” Gorsuch said. “It’s a raucous thing in democracy, and that’s good. That’s great. And part of that is part of our story. Part of our story too, is realizing, again, that the person sitting across from you probably loves his country every bit as much as he did.”
Gorsuch said he was “heartbroken” by the recent attempted assassination of Trump at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner and that the episode appeared to be part of a broader deterioration of civility in politics.
“What keeps me up at night is disagreements that we have, and our sometimes incapacity to realize the humanity of the people we disagree with,” he said.
Gorsuch has publicly maintained a friendly personal relationship with senior liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor, making several joint appearances in an effort to promote civics education and attempt to shore up faith in the Court as an institution.
“When I disagree with my colleagues … I never question that the person sitting across from me loves this country every bit as much as I do, that they love the Constitution and Declaration [of Independence], and that they’re doing their best.”
President Donald Trump speaks to the press near the construction site of his proposed ballroom at the White House in Washington, May 19, 2026. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump, over the noise of drills and hammers, showed off the construction site for his controversial White House ballroom in a tour with reporters on Tuesday.
Trump described the massive project, which started with a demolition of the White House East Wing, as a fortress for himself and future presidents.
“This is a shield that protects everything that’s inside, everything that’s on top,” Trump said. He also said that it would be the “safest building ever built, in my opinion.”
With poster board mock-ups in hand of what the finished product will look like, Trump spoke above the hollowed construction site. The underground complex, Trump said, will be six stories deep and include a military hospital, research facilities and meeting rooms.
“Impenetrable steel” and window glass that is “approximately four inches thick” are among the security features, according to Trump. The roof, he said, will have “massive drone capacity” and will act as a “drone port” so “it protects all of Washington.”
Asked for additional detail about a “drone port,” the White House offered no additional explanation, referring ABC News to Trump’s comments Tuesday morning.
In March, a judge rules that Trump can’t build the ballroom without authorization from Congress, though he said security-related work could go on. An appeals court then stepped in to allow all construction of the project for now while they consider the case more fully. A hearing in the case is set for June 5.
Trump on Tuesday appeared to argue that the entire building was interconnected.
“The roof goes with the ground floor; the ground floor goes with the roof. The roof also goes down into the basement. Everything is connected. Intertwined, elevators, heating, air conditioning. It’s one building. That’s why we’re trying to explain that this is one well-knit building,” Trump said.
During the tour, Trump also maintained his claims that the White House ballroom itself will not cost any taxpayer money.
“So, all of this was paid for by myself. And because I keep hearing like I’m not. We are making a gift of this. This is a gift. This is not going to be paid for by the taxpayer,” Trump said.
The president, who has said that he is one of the people paying for the project, has not publicly released how much he has donated. The White House also said they aimed to raise the funds for the ballroom, the cost of which jumped to $400 million, through private donations.
“This is a gift to the United States of America, and more than a gift. It’s going to be one of the most beautiful buildings that’s ever been built in the country or in Washington, D.C.,” Trump said on Tuesday.
His comments come as some congressional Republicans seek $1 billion in funding, some of which would go to the building project. Democrats have panned the proposal.
“Congress is approving money for security … But this building, I mean, I — I put up the money to build this building, along with a lot of great patriots,” Trump said.
