House Speaker Mike Johnson was caught in a tense confrontation with Rep. Madeleine Dean, who called former President Trump “unwell” and warned of danger to national security.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A chaotic week for the Trump-aligned GOP spiraled further Thursday as multiple political firestorms erupted—one

involving an eyebrow-raising Epstein revelation from a billionaire Trump associate, and another catching House Speaker Mike Johnson off guard in a private, emotional confrontation with a Democratic lawmaker questioning former President Donald Trump’s mental fitness.

The controversy began when billionaire financier Howard Lutnick, a longtime Trump ally and current political insider, gave a jarring

interview in which he openly described his personal visit to the Manhattan mansion of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein—whom he called his “neighbor” of over a decade.

Lutnick casually recalled being invited over for coffee, where Epstein gave him and his wife a house tour that quickly veered into disturbing territory.

“He opens the doors, and there’s a massage table right there in the middle of the room, candles all around,” Lutnick said, his tone shifting from amused to uneasy.

“I said, ‘Massage table? How often do you get a massage?’ And he looks right at me and says, ‘Every day… the right kind of massage.’”

According to Lutnick, he and his wife immediately excused themselves and never returned.

Yet the casual tone in which he revealed the details—and the fact that he brought them up unsolicited—raised alarm, especially considering former President Trump’s well-documented relationship with Epstein and resurfacing speculation amid recent legal battles.

“Why would he admit that on camera?” one political analyst asked. “It reignites a narrative Trump’s team has desperately tried to bury.”

Meanwhile, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson found himself the subject of a tense, off-the-record confrontation on Capitol Hill.

Democratic Representative Madeleine Dean of Pennsylvania approached Johnson following a classified committee briefing and directly expressed concern about Trump’s mental state.

“The president is unhinged. He is unwell,” Dean said, unaware—or perhaps indifferent—to the fact she was being recorded. “You folks on your side, you know it too.”

Johnson appeared visibly uncomfortable, glancing away and attempting to brush off the exchange by claiming he hadn’t seen the controversial performance Trump had given earlier in front of military leaders.

“You’ll have to show me the tweet. I didn’t see it,” Johnson muttered, clearly shaken by the confrontation.

“He knows,” Dean said after walking away. “They all know. But they won’t say it. And this country can’t afford their silence.”

In what observers are calling one of the most candid moments of the post-Trump GOP, Johnson’s inability to directly defend Trump sparked

new concerns over the former president’s grip on party leadership and mental acuity as he barrels toward the 2024 election with mounting legal troubles.

As if that weren’t enough for one news cycle, Trump’s Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Sean Turner, stumbled through an uncomfortable interview with Chris Cuomo, defending a blatantly partisan message posted on a government website.

The post, which blamed the current government shutdown on “the radical left” and immigration funding, was widely criticized as political propaganda and a likely violation of the Hatch Act.

“This isn’t about propaganda, Chris,” Turner insisted. “This is just about letting the American people know what’s going on.”

Cuomo pushed back: “But it is propaganda. It’s right there in black and white.”

The awkward exchange only got worse when Turner was asked a basic question about his agency’s demographic.

“What percentage of people you serve are on Medicaid?” Cuomo asked.

Turner hesitated. “You know, Chris, I can get back to you on that,” he said, unable to offer even a ballpark figure.

Critics seized on the moment as evidence that Trump-era appointments continue to place loyalty and messaging above qualification and competency.

“Fools and freaks,” one viewer posted on social media. “These are the people shaping our lives. It’s like a circus with no ringmaster.”

Back on the Hill, the confrontation between Dean and Johnson is already being discussed among Democrats as a possible turning point—a moment of truth breaking through the rehearsed performance of political theater.

“This is going in the documentaries one day,” one Capitol Hill staffer said. “When people ask what happened to the Republican Party, they’ll replay this moment.

A Speaker of the House, dead silent, blinking, while being told his party is enabling an unwell man. And all he can say is, ‘I didn’t see the tweet.’”

As the GOP struggles with fractured leadership, deepening legal scrutiny, and an increasingly vocal chorus of critics from both sides of the aisle, the question becomes not just whether Trump can win again—but whether the party around him will survive long enough to find out.