HOT POINT

By Erica Stapleton and Andrew Hay

Zorro Ranch is seen in an aerial view near Stanley, New Mexico

SANTA FE, Feb 16 (Reuters) - New Mexico lawmakers on Monday passed legislation to launch what they said was the first full investigation into what happened at Zorro Ranch, where the late U.S. sex offender Jeffrey Epstein is accused of trafficking and sexually assaulting girls and women.

A bipartisan committee will seek testimony from survivors of alleged sexual abuse at the ranch, located about 30 miles south of Santa Fe, ‌the state capital. Legislators are also urging local residents to testify.

Epstein died in what was ruled a suicide in a New York jail in 2019 while facing federal sex trafficking charges.

The so-called truth commission, comprising four lawmakers, seeks to ‌identify ranch guests and state officials who may have known what was going on at the 7,600-acre property, or taken part in alleged sexual abuse in its hacienda-style mansion and guest houses.

The Democratic-led investigation adds to political pressure to uncover Epstein's crimes that has become a major challenge for President Donald Trump, weeks after ​the Justice Department released millions of Epstein-related files that shed new light on activities at the ranch.

The files reveal ties between Epstein and two former Democratic governors and an attorney general of New Mexico.

The legislation, which passed New Mexico's House of Representatives by a unanimous vote, could pose risks to any additional politicians linked to Epstein in the Democratic-run state, as well as scientists, investors and other high-profile individuals who visited the ranch.

The $2.5 million investigation, which has subpoena power, aims to close gaps in New Mexico law that may have allowed Epstein to operate in the state. The committee starts work on Tuesday, and will deliver interim findings in July and a final report by year-end.

"He was basically doing anything he wanted in this state without any accountability whatsoever," said New Mexico state Representative Andrea Romero, a Democrat, who co-sponsored the initiative.

Testimony ‌to the committee could be used for future prosecutions, she said.

Victim advocates applauded the move, ⁠saying Zorro Ranch had been overlooked by federal investigations that focused on Epstein's Caribbean island and New York townhouse.

"Many of the survivors had experiences in New Mexico, and as we've learned, you know, there were local politicians and other people that were aware of what was happening in New Mexico," said attorney Sigrid McCawley, whose law firm has represented hundreds of Epstein survivors.

They include the late Virginia Giuffre, who ⁠was abused many times at the ranch, she said.

The U.S. Department of Justice passed a request for comment to the FBI. The FBI declined comment.

EPSTEIN OPERATED AT THE RANCH FOR DECADES

Several civil suits accuse Epstein of sexually assaulting girls at Zorro Ranch. He was never charged for the alleged offenses.

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Romero said there was no record of federal law enforcement searching what was known locally as "the playboy ranch" where Epstein is accused of sexually abusing a 16-year-old girl as early as 1996.

Former New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas launched a probe in 2019 that was put on hold at the ​request ​of federal prosecutors to avoid "parallel investigation," he said in a statement.

New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez has assigned a special agent to probe allegations that ​may come through the truth commission, spokesperson Lauren Rodriguez said.

Democratic State Representative Marianna Anaya, an advocate for ‌sexual assault survivors who co-sponsored the legislation, is working on accompanying legislation to extend New Mexico's statute of limitations for childhood sexual assault that would allow civil actions by survivors of Epstein's alleged abuse.

Epstein bought the ranch in 1993 from Bruce King, a three-time New Mexico Democratic governor who died in 2009.

The financier flew in guests and "masseuses," and hired local massage therapists to work there, ranch manager Brice Gordon told the FBI in 2007, according to a report in the Epstein files.

In an unsealed 2016 court deposition, Giuffre testified Epstein's partner Ghislaine Maxwell told her to give the late former New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson a "massage" at the ranch. In Giuffre's memoir, she said an instruction from Maxwell to provide a "massage" meant a victim should provide a sexual encounter to an abuser.

Richardson's representative Madeleine Mahoney in a 2019 statement said Giuffre's allegations were "completely false."

Gordon told the FBI that most of the masseuses Epstein used at the ranch were hired locally through the spa Ten Thousand Waves, a Santa Fe institution, or by referrals.

Spa spokesperson Sara Bean said in a ‌phone interview last Tuesday that Ten Thousand Waves neither provided nor referred masseuses to Zorro Ranch.

In the documentary "Surviving Jeffrey Epstein," former Santa Fe massage therapist ​Rachel Benavidez accused Epstein of sexual abuse when she was hired to work at the ranch.

Investment consultant Joshua Ramo said on Sunday he visited the ranch ​once for a 2014 lunch on behalf of professors from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University, who were ​present. Ramo, at the time CEO of consulting firm Kissinger Associates, said he and Epstein met with business figures and scientists around 14 times in New York between 2013 and 2016.

"I deferred to the due diligence ‌of the institutions involved, assuming that his presence signaled he had been appropriately vetted," Ramo, in ​a statement, said of his ranch visit and other meetings with ​Epstein. "I feel a deep sense of grief for the survivors of his crimes."

Emails show Epstein contacted Ramo in 2015 to tell him he was going to Ten Thousand Waves, suggesting they meet for lunch in Santa Fe. Ramo responded, "I assumed we were meeting at the pink bottom ranch." Ramo, who is currently CEO of consulting firm Sornay LLC, said he had no recollection of that comment, or whether the two met that day.

Over the years, Epstein contributed to the political campaigns ​of New Mexico Democrats such as Richardson and King's son Gary King, a former New Mexico ‌attorney general. When contributions were reported in the press, the men pledged to either return the money, or give it to charity.

Gary King flew on a plane chartered by Epstein when he was running for New Mexico ​governor in 2014, according to emails in the Epstein files. Epstein said he would cover around half the cost of the $22,000 charter and King would pay the rest. King did not respond to a request for comment.

(Reporting ​by Erica Stapleton in New Mexico and Florida, reporting by Andrew Hay in New Mexico; editing by Donna Bryson and Diane Craft)

In 1947, African American brothers James and Robert Paschal launched a scrappy luncheonette in Atlanta'sCastleberry Hill neighborhood, their fried chicken earning renown as the house's go-to specialty. Within 15 years, Paschal's Restaurant & Coffee Shop had become not just a beloved community eatery but a supporting player in the civil rights movement.

In the years before passage of the1964 Civil Rights Act, the soul food restaurant offered more than nourishment: Not far from the offices of Martin Luther King Jr.'sSouthern Christian Leadership Conference, Paschal's was a hub for civil rights luminaries such as King, John Lewis and Julian Bond as well as a refuge for Atlanta parents waiting to reunite with students arrested for conducting lunch counter sit-ins.

As the civil rights movement gathered momentum in the 1950s and early 1960s,Paschal'sand other Black-owned restaurants played crucial roles throughout the South, offering affirmation, security and even financial support, with food as the common thread.  As with Black churches and Black-owned salons and barbershops, they provided gathering space free from the scrutiny and disrespect community members often faced elsewhere.

"These restaurants lent themselves to the movement because they had the autonomy to decide for themselves what happened under the roof of their place," said Bobby J. Smith, an associate professor of African American studies at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. "They were able to welcome all people, particularly those who did not have the opportunity to be part of other restaurant spaces."

As dining establishments, he said, they provided cover for revolutionary activity.

"On the outside it looked like people were just going in to gather around gumbo or pork chops," said Smith, author of "Food Power Politics: The Food Story of the Mississippi Civil Rights Movement." "But inside, they were planning one of themost important social movementsin American history. It's a covert network of public spaces hidden in plain sight."

That's why such restaurants were important from a strategic standpoint, said Marcia Chatelain, a professor of Africana studies at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia and author of "Franchise: The Golden Arches in Black America."

"During the era of segregation, there were few places where African Americans could dine without fear they would be treated poorly or harmed by other patrons," she said.

It wasn't only restaurants: People like Montgomery's Georgia Gilmore also embraced food as a weapon in thewar against discrimination. A cook who lost her job at a White-run restaurant after testifying in support of the 1956 Montgomery bus boycott, Gilmore started acatering businessthat helped feed and raise funds on the sly for civil rights activists in Alabama.

"She used food as a way to support the movement," Smith said.

Meanwhile, across town, the constant lines of people waiting for barbecued ribs and chicken atBrenda's Bar-Be-Que Pithelped the Montgomery take-out stand likewise lend financial support to ongoing activism.

"Brenda's was very dynamic, very involved in the movement," said Georgette Norman, the retired former director of Montgomery'sRosa ParksMuseum at Troy University. "Food was one of the ways that money was raised. Everybody has to eat. These days, people say, send me a check. But back then people cooked, and people bought, and people ate. Brenda's was part of that."

Robert and James Paschal passed away in 1997 and 2008, respectively, but their descendants continue to operate the restaurant, which reopened in a more modern Castleberry Hill neighborhood location in 2022. Its walls continue to exude history in the form of mounted photos of King and others who were once regular patrons.

Paschal's and Brenda's are some of the few establishments central to the civil rights movement that have stood the test of time. Here are some others that continue to operate today.

Dooky Chase's, New Orleans

The first time Raphael Cassimere Jr. tried going to Dooky Chase's he waited two hours in line and never got in. That was in 1959, and Cassimere was a fresh high school graduate in New Orleans;Dooky Chase's, in the city's Treme' neighborhood, was one of the few fine dining spots where Black people were welcome.

"There was another high school graduation the same night," he said.

Cassimere, who retired in 2007 after 37 years as a professor of history at the University of New Orleans, recalled finally entering the famed restaurant a year later as a member of the city's youth council, accompanying a lunch group that included a high-ranking NAACP official.

Dooky Chase's etouffee, stuffed shrimp and jambalaya drew steady crowds that eventually included civil rights advocates like Thurgood Marshall, A.P. Tureaud andErnest "Dutch" Morial. In the 1960s, King convened with Freedom Riders in the private dining room upstairs to plan and strategize as the movement heated up.

Cassimere was among the young activists who attended meetings there.

"(Chef) Leah (Chase) would serve us herself," he said. "There were not many places where Black and white activists could meet together."

In 1941, jazz trumpeter Edgar "Dooky" Chase Jr. had taken over the late-night po'boy sandwich stand opened by his father, and before long his wife Leah began introducing Creole dishes to the menu. As the couple transformed the place into a sit-down restaurant with linen tablecloths, Leah Chase took over as chef in 1952, eventually earning acclaim as "The Queen of Creole Cuisine."

Acclaimed Black music artists like Duke Ellington, Sarah Vaughn and Cab Calloway stopped at Dooky Chase's post-performance, unable to patronize other establishments.

"Dooky Chase's was a fine dining restaurant, one of the first Black-owned restaurants of its kind in the nation," said Smith, of the University of Illinois. "Leah Chase had worked in those kinds of places in New Orleans and she wanted to give Black people a space to experience a different level of dining rooted in their cultural foodways. She wanted them to know they mattered."

For civil rights activists, that upper room became a place to be fed and reenergized, "a space where people could meet and organize, or just catch their breath," Smith said. "It became thisSituation Room, if you will, a space where they could talk over food about what to do to change the trajectory of the nation."

Four Way Grill, Memphis

In summer 2022, California chef Geoff Davis enjoyed a transformative lunch at what's now called simply the Four Way as he and his mother traveled through Tennessee, visiting friends and civil rights landmarks in Nashville and Memphis.

At the time, Davis was preparing to open Burdell, the reimagined soul food restaurant he owns in Oakland, California, and he wanted to see what other restaurants were doing.

TheFour Way, a modest stone structure minutes from the Stax Museum of American Soul Music in Memphis'SoulsvilleDistrict, was on his list. Having been underwhelmed by most places he'd visited, his expectations were low – but this experience took him by surprise.

"It's pretty powerful being in there given the sense of history that place has," Davis said. "The food was phenomenal — really vibrant and delicious and comforting."

Irene and Clint Cleaves opened what was then theFour Way Grillin 1946, a Southern food sanctuary with an integrated clientele and a back door through which Stax musicians sometimes entered to avoid attention. During the civil rights movement, activist leaders such as King, theRev. Jesse Jacksonand theRev. Al Sharptontalked strategy over meals of fried chicken and greens.

Davis said he and his mother actually became emotional as they enjoyed their lunch from Four Way — fried chicken, stewed neckbones, lima beans, macaroni and cheese, cornbread and other items that unlocked vaults of memories.

"Some of the dishes tasted like the ones we grew up eating at home or at the homes of family members who have since passed away," he said. "So it was nourishing in that way too."

The experience, Davis said, informed his menu atBurdell.

"The simplicity of it really stuck with me," he said. "We're slightly fancier, but some of the dishes there were how I remembered them as a kid. Going to Four Way really gave me the confidence to say, we're going to do smothered cabbage and do it straight up. It doesn't need garnishes; it just needs to be the best cabbage we can find. Having that homestyle element is really special."

Big Apple Inn, Jackson

In the 1950s and early 1960s,Farish Streetwas the heart of the Black community in Jackson, Mississippi, a thriving hub of entertainment and economic activity that defied the oppressive weight of segregation.

"It was one of the only places where Black people could go out and be social," said Smith, of the University of Illinois. "In New Orleans there's a level of racism that people know and see, but in Mississippi you can feel it as well."

It was on Farish Street that Mexico City native Juan "Big John" Mora, who ended up in Jackson after train-hopping through the U.S. seeking work, had set up a tamale stand that would lead to a brick-and-mortar restaurant called theBig Apple Innin 1939.

By 1952, the Big Apple Inn had moved across the street into a two-story building, with Mora's tamales sharing the spotlight with smoked sausage and pig ear sandwiches. Civil rights activistMedgar Evers, who had a second-floor office, began conducting meetings in the downstairs eatery.

That the Big Apple was owned by Mora and his wife, who was Black, provided a level of protection that activists found in rare supply.

"A lot of these independent business owners weren't necessarily immune from economic reprisal, but usually families who owned restaurants were in a better financial space to take more political risks," said Chatelain, of the University of Pennsylvania. "They could be movement-friendly because they were the bosses of their own businesses."

The Big Apple is now run by Geno Lee, Mora's great-grandson, and its menu remains very much the same as it was, with regulars stopping in for "smokes" and "ears" and tamales made according to Mora's own recipe, though now with turkey instead of beef.

Davis, the Oakland chef, said restaurant owners who hosted or enabled civil rights activity "were very brave to have their spaces be hubs for that. There's a bit of revolutionary spirit in entrepreneurship, and that's doubling down on being willing to take a risk."

Since everyone needs to eat, he said, such restaurants helped nurture the soul.

"Restaurants are gathering places," Davis said. "Everyone's full and happy, and when you're talking about difficult things it's good to have some comfort to go alongside that."

USA TODAY Network reporter Todd A. Price contributed to this story.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Black-owned restaurants played vital role in civil rights movement

A Mardi Gras social group says it is investigating an incident on a float during its Feb. 14 parade in which a Black doll appeared to hang by the neck from a necklace of beads.

Photos and videos of the doll being held over the side of the float using beads, necklaces commonly tossed to parade revelers at Mardi Gras, began circulating after it was spotted during aKrewe of Tucksorganizationparade in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Videos appear to show the doll hanging by its neck from a strand of beads as it's held alongside other necklaces waiting to be tossed into the crowd of paradegoers. A young girl caught the doll attached to the beads at the parade,according to a postby the City of New Orleans.

The Krewe of Tucks organization condemned the action following the parade, writing in astatement posted on social mediathat the "behavior is intolerable and completely contrary to the beliefs and values that the Krewe of Tucks holds."

"We intend to fully investigate this incident and the responsible riders will no longer be permitted to have any association with the parade," the statement read. "The leadership wishes this had been brought to our attention during the parade because it would have been addressed immediately. This was brought to our attention through social media and we are immediately investigating."

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Joseph Prezioso / AFP via Getty

NEED TO KNOW

• A suspect fired an estimated 14 shots at the Dennis M. Lumch Arena ice rink in Pawtucket, R.I., on Monday, Feb. 16 during a high school hockey game

• One victim and the shooter were found deceased at the skating rink

• Four people were transported to the hospital, where one victim succumbed to their injuries and died

Two people were fatally shot during a high school hockey game in Pawtucket, R.I., on Monday, Feb. 16.

On Monday afternoon, a shooter entered the Dennis M. Lumch Arena during a match between Coventry/Johnston and Blackstone Valley Co-op, and fired 13 shots in 6 seconds. The final and 14th shot came 11 seconds later, according tofootageposted by an X user.

When the shots were fired, players behind the glass and those attending the game immediately began to scream and duck for cover. The players on the ice did not react immediately, but seconds later skated quickly off the ice to safety.

All of the hockey players were safe and uninjured, according toNBC 10.

Five people were reportedly shot. One victim was found deceased at the ice rink. The second victim was rushed to Rhode Island Hospital, where they succumbed to their injuries. Three others who were injured remain in critical condition,The Providence Journalreported.

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The shooter, whose identity has not been released, died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Upon authorities' arrival, the shooter and one victim were found deceased, Pawtucket police chief Tina Goncalves said, per NBC 10.

"It seems like this is a targeted event and it may have been a family dispute," Goncalves told the outlet.

She did not confirm the victims' identities or whether they may be related to the suspected shooter.

Rhode Island Sen. Jack Reed issued a statement toX, thanking law enforcement and emergency responders for their assistance, "as well as the good Samaritan who confronted and tried to disarm the shooter."

Local sports reporter Branden Mello posted toXthat multiple people witnessed a father grabbing a gun out of the shooter's hand, but said that the suspect was carrying a second weapon.

Joseph Prezioso / AFP via Getty

Read the original article onPeople

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza is now starting to shift his mindset toward the NFL, which really was his goal when he transferred to Indiana.

APTOPIX CFP National Championship Football

Mendoza and the Hoosiers just happened to have a perfect season together that ended with animprobable national championship.

"It's been a whirlwind. I think now it's finally settled in and the dust has started to settle," Mendoza said Monday night before receiving the Davey O'Brien Award as the nation's top college quarterback. "The national championship, and then boom, next thing you know you're on a new chapter."

The latest award ceremony for Mendoza, the transfer from Cal who grew up a few miles from Miami's campus, came exactly four weeks after Indiana won its first national championship 27-21 over the Hurricanes in their home stadium. It was also a week before the NFL combine, and just over two months from the opening night of the NFL draft on April 23, when Mendoza very wellcould be the No. 1 overall pickby the Las Vegas Raiders andtheir new coach.

"I'd be blessed and honored to play for the Raiders, or I'd be blessed to play for any team. Any NFL team that drafts me, I'd be ecstatic," he said. "I know at the draft, I'll probably shed a tear or two just because it's such a full-circle moment for me. ... The goal of transferring to Indiana was to make the NFL. It wasn't to be a great college player. It was to try to develop into being an NFL quarterback one day."

Mendoza threw for 3,535 yards and an FBS-leading 41 touchdowns while completing 273 of 379 passes (72%) with only six interceptions. He had 4,712 yards passing and 30 TDs in 20 games over two seasons at Cal, which gave him a late scholarship offer after he had been prepared out of high school to "put myself into student debt" to play football at Yale — since no athletic scholarships are offered in the Ivy League — because he loved the game so much.

Now the 22-year-old QB is preparing to move on to the highest level, knowing that college success won't automatically translate to the pros.

"College is great, but that part's behind me," he said. "I feel like I've been satisfied with my college career. However, now I'm on to the NFL career. It requires a new skill set. It's a grown man's league."

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His Heisman Trophy

When Mendozaaccepted the Heisman Trophyin December, his intention was to keep the trophy in Bloomington forever, where he felt it belonged.

It wasn't until a couple of weeks later, when the Heisman Trophy was in a case on the Indiana campus, that he realized he also got one of his own to keep.

"Then I took it back home, and so it's in my living room, which is great," he said. "Think about that decoration."

He even took his trophy to St. Paul Catholic Center in Bloomington, where he regularly attended Mass, to share with the church leaders around Christmas. He also hopes to take the trophy to his high school in Miami.

Mendoza's heir apparent

The ceremony for the Davey O'Brien Award, named for the former TCU quarterback and 1938 Heisman winner, is held only a few miles from the TCU campus. That is also where the quarterback who likely will replace Mendoza was a starter the past three seasons.

Josh Hoover threw for 9,629 yards and 71 touchdowns over 36 games for the Horned Frogs before leaving in the portal for Indiana even before the national championship game.

Mendoza said he hadn't had the opportunity to speak with Hoover, and said any advice he would have for his successor would be given in person.

Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign uphere. AP college football:https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-pollandhttps://apnews.com/hub/college-football

The Cleveland Browns will reportedly hire Atlanta Falcons defensive pass game coordinator Mike Rutenberg as defensive coordinator, according toESPN's Jeremy Fowler. The Browns hired Rutenberg over Browns linebackers coach Jason Tarver and Houston Texans defensive passing game coordinator Cory Undlin.

Rutenberg will replace Jim Schwartz, the former Browns defensive coordinator whoresignedafter the team selectedTodd Monkeninstead of him for the head coaching position. This will be Rutenberg's first time as a defensive coordinator. Similarly, the Browns' new offensive coordinator, Travis Switzer, is serving in this role for the first time.

Before joining the Falcons, Rutenberg coached under Tennessee Titans head coach Robert Saleh with the New York Jets and the San Francisco 49ers. The Titans requested to interview him for their defensive coordinator opening before hiring Gus Bradley.

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The 44-year-old also spent time in the NFL with the Jacksonville Jaguars and Washington Commanders and at the collegiate level with New Mexico State and UCLA.

Rutenberg will take over for a Browns defense that ranked in the top five in yards allowed and sacks last season. The team is also expected to bring back2025 Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett, who set theNFL's single-season record with 23 sackslast season. Browns linebacker Carson Schwesinger also won Defensive Rookie of the Year.

The Browns are coming off a 5-12 season and missed the playoffs the last two seasons.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — President Donald Trump on Monday lashed out at Maryland Gov. Wes Moore over what he says is a lagging response toa January pipe rupturethat sentsewage flowinginto the Potomac River northwest of Washington.

Trump took aim at Moore even though a District of Columbia-based water authority and the federal government have jurisdiction over the busted pipe.

The 1960s-era pipe, called the Potomac Interceptor, is part of DC Water, a utility based in Washington that's federally regulated and under the oversight of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Still, Trump, while spending the holiday weekend at his home in Florida, took to social media to say he "cannot allow incompetent Local 'Leadership'" to turn the Potomac "into a Disaster Zone." He said he has ordered federal authorities to step in to coordinate the response.

"There is a massive Ecological Disaster unfolding in the Potomac River as a result of the Gross Mismanagement of Local Democrat Leaders, particularly, Governor Wes Moore, of Maryland," Trump added in his social media post.

But Ammar Moussa, a spokesman for Moore, said EPA officials did not participate in a recent legislative hearing about the cleanup and said the Trump administration has been broadly "shirking its responsibility" on the repair and cleanup of what University of Maryland researchers say is one of the largest sewage spills in U.S. history.

"The President has his facts wrong — again," Moussa said. He added, "Apparently the Trump administration hadn't gotten the memo that they're actually supposed to be in charge here."

DC Water CEO and General Manager David L. Gadis said in a statement Monday, "We have been coordinating with U.S. EPA since the Potomac Interceptor collapsed."

Who is responsible?

Asked why Trump was placing blame on Moore outside of Maryland's jurisdiction, a White House official, who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity, said Maryland was slow to coordinate with federal entities on the ruptured pipe and has not kept up with needed updates of the state's water and wastewater infrastructure.

Trump said the Federal Emergency Management Agency will play a key role in coordinating the response, but noted the agency is being impacted by apause in fundingfor theDepartment of Homeland Security.

The partial government shutdown began Saturday after congressional Democrats and Trump's teamfailed to reach a dealon legislation to fund DHS through September. Theimpasse affectsagencies such as the Transportation Security Administration, U.S. Coast Guard, the Secret Service, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and FEMA.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt pointed to the sewage spill on social media, posting, "Add this to the long list of reasons Democrats need to get serious and fund the Department of Homeland Security."

The spill was caused by a 72-inch (183-centimeter) diameter sewer pipe that collapsed last month, leading to millions of gallons of wastewater shooting out of the ground and into the river.

DC Water says fixing the pipe in the aftermath of the Jan. 19 rupture has been complicated.

A video inspection of the pipeline earlier this month revealed the blockage inside the collapsed sewer line is "far more significant" than originally thought. The agency said it discovered a large rock dam about 30 feet (9 meters) fromthe breach in the sewage line,which requires treatment before the current spill can be addressed.

The emergency repair is expected to take another four to six weeks. The work will address the immediate repairs to the damaged section of the pipe and several other issues, including environmental restoration.

Washington, D.C.'s Department of Energy and Environment says the drinking water remains safe, but has urged people to avoid unnecessary contact with water from the Potomac River, avoid fishing and keep pets away.

An ongoing fight between Trump and Moore

The president and Moore, a Democrat viewed as potential 2028 presidential contender, have frequently sparred since Trump's return to the White House last year.

Trump says he's excluding Moore and Democrat Colorado Gov. Jared Polis from a White House dinner for governors set for Saturday as state leaders gather in Washington for the National Governors Association meeting.

The president and aides have also criticized Moore and other Maryland officials for violence in the state's biggest city, Baltimore, with Trump threatening to send National Guard troops as he has elsewhere around the country.

Moore and other Democratic officials in Maryland pushed back that homicides in Baltimore have reachedhistoric lowswith sustained declinesstarting in 2023, and said the state did not need National Guard troops.

The Trump administration has also questioned Moore about "DEI contracting practices" and "ballooning project costs" for the rebuilding of Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge. The crucial bridge collapsed in March 2024 after a massive container ship crashed into it.

The president told reporters that his dissatisfaction with Moore's handling of reconstruction of the bridge and the sewage spill are why he's not including him in next weekend's White House dinner for governors.

"He can't fix anything," Trump told reporters as he flew back to Washington from his home in Florida on Monday evening.

Moussa, the governor's spokesman, said Maryland stands ready to work with federal officials.

"The Potomac isn't a talking point, and the people of the region deserve serious leadership that meets the moment," Moussa said.