House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said Sunday that Jeffrey Epstein’s former girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell deserves a life sentence, rejecting the idea of a potential pardon for the convicted sex trafficker.  

In an appearance on NBC’s ‘Meet the Press,’ Johnson was asked if he supported a pardon for Maxwell, but the speaker emphasized that the decision ultimately belongs to President Donald Trump. 

‘I think 20 years was a pittance,’ Johnson said of Maxwell’s time behind bars. ‘I think she should have a life sentence, at least. I mean, think of all these unspeakable crimes.’ 

‘I mean it’s hard to put into words how evil this was and that she orchestrated it and was a big part of it, at least under the criminal sanction, I think is an unforgivable thing,’ Johnson added, acknowledging that federal prosecutors identified more than 1,000 victims, many of whom were underage. ‘So again, not my decision, but I have great pause about that as any reasonable person would.’ 

While leaving the White House on Friday en route for Scotland, Trump was asked if he considered a pardon or clemency for Maxwell. The president left the door open, responding: ‘I’m allowed to do it, but it’s something I have not thought about.’

Johnson said he supports the position of the president, the FBI and the Justice Department that ‘all credible evidence and information’ be released, but emphasized the need for safeguards to protect victims’ identities. As for Maxwell, she was questioned by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche at federal prison in Tallahassee, Florida, for two consecutive days last week. Her lawyer told reporters she answered questions on about 100 potential Epstein associates as she angles for clemency. 

‘That’s a decision of the president,’ Johnson said of a potential Maxwell pardon. ‘He said he had not adequately considered that. I won’t get in front of him. That’s not my lane. My lane is to help direct and control the House of Representatives and to use every tool within our arsenal to get to the truth. I’m going to say this as clearly and plainly and repeatedly as I can over and over. We are for maximum disclosure. We want all transparency. I trust the American people. I and the House Republicans believe that they should have all this information to be able to determine what they will. But we have to protect the innocent. And that’s the only safeguard here that we’ve got to be diligent about, and I’m insistent upon doing so.’ 

Johnson criticized a petition for the release of all the Epstein files brought by Reps. Thomas Massie, R-W.Va., and Ro Khanna, D-Penn., as ‘reckless’ and poorly drafted, arguing that it ignored federal rules protecting grand jury materials and ‘would require the DOJ and FBI to release information that they know is false, that is based on lies and rumors and was not even credible enough to be entered into the court proceedings.’ 

The speaker said the petition also lacked safeguards for minor victims who were subjected to ‘unspeakable crimes, abject evil’ and who risk being ‘unmasked.’ Johnson said Massie and Khanna ‘cite that they don’t want child abuse, sex abuse information uncovered, but they cite the wrong provision of the federal code, and so it makes it unworkable.’ The speaker argued Republicans on the House Rules Committee are committed to a better drafted approach that will protect the innocent. 

Asked about a potential pardon for Maxwell, Massie told NBC’s Kristen Welker earlier in the program that it ‘would be up to the president, but if she has information that could help us, I think that she should testify.’ 

‘Let’s get that out there, and whatever they need to do to compel that testimony, as long as it’s truthful, I would be in favor of,’ Massie said. 

Khanna said he did not believe Maxwell’s sentence should be commuted and that he was concerned that Blanche was meeting with her. He said he agreed with Massie that Maxwell should testify but noted she has been indicted twice for perjury.

‘This is why we need the files. This is why we need independent evidence,’ Khanna said. 

Former President Barack Obama issued a rare statement weighing in on the hunger situation in Gaza on Sunday, suggesting aid must flow to Palestinians regardless of whether Israel can secure a hostage deal for now.

Obama made the statement on social media in reference to reporting from the New York Times stating that ‘Gazans are dying of starvation.’ Israel, which blockaded aid to Gaza earlier this year, has recently begun to airdrop aid resources into the region, and its leaders argue reports of starvation are a false campaign promoted by Hamas. Reporting from Fox News’ Trey Yingst has indicated that hunger is indeed spreading across the region, however.

‘While a lasting resolution to the crisis in Gaza must involve a return of all hostages and a cessation of Israel’s military operations, these articles underscore the immediate need for action to be taken to prevent the travesty of innocent people dying of preventable starvation,’ Obama wrote on X, providing a link to the Times.

‘Aid must be permitted to reach people in Gaza. There is no justification for keeping food and water away from civilian families,’ he added.

President Donald Trump touted U.S. efforts to provide aid to Gaza when asked about the situation on Sunday. Meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at the time, he stated that Europe has not provided aid to Gaza. He also said that Hamas is stealing much of the aid being sent to Palestinians, a claim Israel has put forward repeatedly.

‘When I see the children and when I see, especially over the last couple of weeks people are stealing the food, they’re stealing the money, they’re stealing the money for the food. They’re stealing weapons, they’re stealing everything,’ Trump told reporters.

‘It’s a mess, that whole place is a mess. The Gaza Strip, you know it was given many years ago so they could have peace. That didn’t work out too well,’ he added.

The IDF says it conducted 28 drops in a matter of hours on Sunday, in addition to transferring some 250 aid trucks over the course of the week.

‘Let me be clear: Israel supports aid for civilians, not for Hamas. The IDF will continue to support the flow of humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza,’ an IDF spokesperson said Sunday.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has also pushed back on criticism of his regime, arguing that the United Nations has been falsely pushing claims of widespread starvation. He told the Jerusalem Post on Sunday that it has long been Israel’s policy to allow aid into Gaza so long as it did not benefit Hamas.

‘We’ve done this so far,’ Netanyahu told the paper. ‘But the U.N. is spreading lies and falsehoods about Israel. They say we don’t allow humanitarian supplies in, yet we do. There are secure corridors. They’ve always existed, but now it’s official. No more excuses.’

Artificial intelligence is no longer a niche tool for tech labs or science-fiction thrillers. It’s now the battleground where the future of American power, prosperity, and freedom will be decided. With the release of ‘Winning the AI Race: America’s AI Action Plan,’ the Trump administration is rightfully treating this moment as the 21st-century equivalent of the space race or the nuclear age. 

This bold strategy outlines over 90 policy actions that span three key pillars: Accelerating Innovation, Building American AI Infrastructure, and Leading in International Diplomacy and Security. Each of these pillars sends a clear message to the world: America intends to lead – not follow – on artificial intelligence. 

And we must. This is a race we can’t afford to lose. 

President Donald Trump’s AI plan: strong, strategic and patriotic 

The Trump administration’s plan does what Washington too often fails to do: it combines vision with action. From fast-tracking permits for critical data centers and chip fabrication plants, to expanding the skilled trades workforce needed to maintain those facilities, the plan hits both high-tech and firsthand realities. 

Crucially, the plan calls for exporting secure, full-stack American AI packages – hardware, software, models, applications and standards – to trusted allies. That’s smart policy. In a world where China exports authoritarian surveillance technology, America must counter with liberty-based alternatives. 

And most refreshingly, the plan defends free speech. It mandates that federal procurement contracts only go to developers of large language models that are free from ideological censorship. That’s a huge win for constitutional values in a time when Big Tech algorithms increasingly silence dissent. 

But here’s the hard truth: AI could also unleash chaos 

The optimism in this action plan is well-founded – but incomplete. As foreign policy analysts Matan Chorev and Joel Predd recently warned in their Foreign Policy article, the U.S. must also assume the worst about artificial intelligence – especially artificial general intelligence (AGI). That’s the version of AI that can perform at or above human levels across a wide range of tasks.  

Unlike nuclear weapons, AGI won’t announce itself with a mushroom cloud. It may slip quietly into our systems, our economy and even our military decision-making – without a clear warning shot. The nightmare scenario? A rogue AI, either built by an enemy nation or evolving beyond human control, triggering economic collapse or catastrophic warfare.  

That’s why the U.S. must not only pursue victory in AI, but vigilance. Planning for worst-case scenarios isn’t fearmongering – it’s common sense. The COVID-19 pandemic taught us what happens when leaders fail to prepare for known risks. With AI, we may not get a second chance.  

We need break-glass plans — now 

What happens if a U.S. company suddenly claims to have developed AGI and asks for national security protections – access to classified data, regulatory exemptions and federal backing? What if China gets there first?  

The Biden-era playbook of strategic ambiguity and global appeasement won’t cut it. America needs break-glass protocols: clear, tested plans to respond to AI emergencies – whether cyberattacks, misinformation campaigns or autonomous systems going rogue. 

This requires massive coordination across the Pentagon, the Department of Homeland Security, our intelligence community and private industry. The federal government must build the analytical muscle to separate hype from real breakthroughs – and act fast when a threat emerges. 

Cyber defenses must be ‘attribution-agnostic’ 

Advanced AI attacks may not come with a digital return address. Whether an attack comes from Beijing, a terrorist network or a self-replicating algorithm, our cyber defenses must be able to detect, contain and recover without waiting for attribution. 

That means hardening critical infrastructure, isolating vulnerable data centers and ensuring military continuity of operations in a high-tech crisis. These aren’t science-fiction concerns – they’re strategic imperatives. 

The world needs American values — not just American technology 

The Trump administration’s emphasis on exporting U.S. technology to allies is critical – but we must also export American values. Freedom. Accountability. Innovation with restraint. Our allies want alternatives to China’s surveillance-driven tech regime. America can lead that coalition – but only if we speak as clearly about ethics as we do about engineering.  

David Sacks, the White House’s AI and crypto czar, put it plainly: ‘To win the AI race, the U.S. must lead in innovation, infrastructure, and global partnerships. At the same time, we must center American workers and avoid Orwellian uses of AI.’ 

He’s right. Victory in AI is not just about lines of code – it’s about preserving what it means to be human in an age of machines. 

Bold innovation, clear-eyed preparedness 

Winning the AI Race is a historic first step. It champions free markets, American jobs, national strength and liberty-based governance in the AI era. But we must not mistake ambition for immunity. 

America needs a dual-track strategy: drive innovation with urgency – and prepare for disaster with equal urgency. Our adversaries won’t wait. Neither will the technology.  

We can – and must – lead the world into the AI future. But let’s do it with eyes wide open, grounded in our values and ready for anything.