The Latest: No end in sight to government shutdown as House speaker refuses to negotiate

The shutdown entered its 14th day with the Senate returning from its holiday break, Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson refusing to call lawmakers back to Washington and President Donald Trump’s budget director vowing to keep firing federal workers.

Democrats have focused on trying to keep Affordable Care Act subsidies from expiring for millions of Americans who purchase insurance on Obamacare exchanges. Without this federal support, costs are expected to soar across the health care economy. Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson said he “won’t negotiate” unless Democrats first agree to reopen the government, losing their leverage for any deal.

The Latest:

Police protecting U.S. Capitol, Congress miss first full paycheck

As the government shutdown leaves many federal workers furloughed or working without pay, its impact is increasingly being felt in missed paychecks.

The union representing members of the U.S. Capitol Police — who protect the Capitol, members of Congress and their staff — said that on Friday, officers did not receive a full paycheck.

“The longer the shutdown drags on, the harder it becomes for my officers,” said Gus Papathanasiou, chairman of the union. “Banks and landlords do not give my officers a pass because we are in shutdown – they still expect to be paid.”

Trump threatens to pull aid to Argentina based on election results

Trump, seeming to refer to Argentina’s crucial midterm elections later this month that will be a referendum on Milei’s policies, said that “If he loses, we are not going to be generous with Argentina.”

It’s not the first time this year Trump has sought to insert himself in the domestic affairs of another country to protect a leader seen as an ally.

The comments came a day after Trump, while speaking at the Knessett, called for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to be pardoned in the corruption trial he faces. Trump branded the trial a “witch hunt,” a term he used for his own court cases while he was running for president last year.

The president also called the prosecution against former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, for attempting to overturn his 2022 election, a “witch hunt.” Trump then imposed 50% tariffs on the Latin American country and sanctioned its main justice in retaliation.

Treasury secretary meets with Ukranian prime minister

Scott Bessent met with Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko to reaffirm the U.S.’ “unwavering support for Ukrainian sovereignty.”

A Treasury readout of the meeting states that Bessent stressed the need for European allies to ratchet up pressure on Russia, and any country that purchases Russian oil.

Trump says he’s considering imposing tariffs on Spain

He said the move could come in retaliation for Spain now following other NATO members and increasing its military spending.

Trump added that Spain is “doing very well off our backs.” He was referring to Spain being the sole member of the 32-nation alliance not to commit to increasing military spending to 5% of GDP.

Trump said that geography ensures that Spain gets NATO protection “automatically” but that what the country had done was “very disrespectful to NATO.”

Trump has previously suggested Spain should be expelled from NATO. He didn’t say that this time, but said of imposing possible tariffs, “I may do that” and that, “I think they should be punished.”

That’s despite Trump’s administration already having negotiated tariff rates with the European Union, which includes Spain.

Trump tells Hamas to disarm and return dead hostages

Trump says he wants dead hostages held in Gaza back and warns Hamas if “they don’t disarm, we will disarm them.”

The U.S. president made the comment while speaking at the White House during Argentinian President Javier Milei’s visit.

It comes after an Israeli military agency declared a “violation” of the truce agreement that it would respond to by halving the number of trucks allowed to bring humanitarian aid into the devastated territory.

Milei gives Trump gold-framed letter nominating him for Nobel Peace Prize

The glowing letter that the Argentine leader wrote expressed his “deepest admiration” for Trump and his “commitment to peace.”

Trump has long sought a Nobel Peace Prize but suggested he may never be awarded it.

Trump received nominations for the prize this year but many of them occurred after the February deadline for the 2025 award. That fell just a week and a half into his second term.

Foreign leaders who’ve sought close relations with the White House have suggested Trump should win the award or said they will nominate him.

Trump explains why U.S. is helping out Argentina

The U.S. is establishing a $20 billion currency swap line to prop up the Argentine peso — and that assistance is to help a “great philosophy take over a great country,” Trump says.

“Argentina is one of the most beautiful countries that I’ve ever seen,” Trump said.

The president also stressed that it was helping “our neighbors.”

Secretary of State Marco Rubio added that Argentina was “foremost” among Latin American countries that have “aligned with the United States on issue after issue.”

“I think this is important,” Trump said. “This is our hemisphere.”

Trump and Milei begin their meeting

The two leaders are holding a working lunch in the Cabinet Room at the White House.

“He’s MAGA all the way,” Trump said of the Argentine leader. It usually refers to Trump’s campaign slogan, “Make America Great Again,” but in this instance, Trump was also using it to say “Make Argentina Great Again.”

Milei, speaking in Spanish, said he was “very honored, especially in this moment when we are giving thanks for Trump’s great leadership.”

“We can follow a peaceful route and make Argentina a strong example for freedom and prosperity,” Milei said.

Trump confirms another US strike against boat in Caribbean

He said in a post on social media that six people were killed in the strike on the vessel suspected of carrying drugs off the waters of Venezuela. No U.S. forces were harmed.

It’s the fifth deadly strike in the Caribbean as the Trump administration has asserted that it is treating alleged drug traffickers as unlawful combatants who must be met with military force.

Frustration with the administration has been growing on Capitol Hill among members of both major political parties. Some Republicans are seeking more information from the White House on the legal justification and details of the strikes. Democrats contend the strikes violate U.S. and international law.

▶ Read more about the latest strike.

House Judiciary Committee seeks testimony from Jack Smith

Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee want the Justice Department special counsel who prosecuted Trump to appear for an interview.

Rep. Jim Jordan, the committee chair, charged in a letter to Smith that his team’s prosecutions of Trump were “partisan and politically motivated.” Jordan’s move shows how Republicans are escalating their tactics to go after Trump’s perceived enemies.

Smith pursued two criminal cases against Trump — for illegally holding classified documents and for interfering in the 2020 election — but abandoned them after Trump won election last year.

The House Judiciary Committee has also conducted interviews with other members of Smith’s team, Jordan said, but they declined to answer many questions, citing the Fifth Amendment.

Milei arrives at the White House

The Argentine leader was greeted warmly by Trump in the West Wing driveway shortly after 1:30 p.m.

The two men posed for photos, both giving a thumbs-up.

When asked by a reporter for his message to Argentina, the U.S. president said: “We love them. We will be there for them.”

Trump added, “and they have a great leader. They have a very great leader.”

Argentina’s leader praises Trump before White House meeting

“Your commitment to life, freedom and peace has restored hope to the world,” President Javier Milei wrote on social media, congratulating the U.S. president on securing a ceasefire deal in Gaza, where a truce is holding after a devastating, two-year Israel-Hamas war.

The Trump-Milei bromance has already paid off for Argentina — most recently, to the tune of a $20 billion bailout.

Experts say Milei comes to the White House with two clear objectives. One is to negotiate U.S. tariff exemptions or reductions for Argentine products.

▶ Read more about the White House meeting.

Trump takes note of slow return of dead hostages to Israel

“ALL TWENTY HOSTAGES ARE BACK AND FEELING AS GOOD AS CAN BE EXPECTED. A big burden has been lifted, but the job IS NOT DONE,” Trump wrote in a posting on his Truth Social platform. “THE DEAD HAVE NOT BEEN RETURNED, AS PROMISED! Phase Two begins right NOW!!”

He made no mention in his post of Israel announcing earlier Tuesday that it would halve the flow of aid into the territory as a result of the slow return of the dead.

Trump moves Kirk Medal of Freedom ceremony to Rose Garden

The president said in a post on social media that he’s moving the ceremony to posthumously honor Charlie Kirk outside at the White House, where he paved over the Rose Garden grass, because the crowd will be “so big and enthusiastic.”

Trump said the new location will allow people to see the changes he’s made, such as the Presidential Walk of Fame where he hung portraits of the previous commanders-in-chief, along with renovations to the Palm Court.

Trump’s post to the entire world also included instructions on how to enter the White House for the event: “Enter through Main South Entrance.”

Some airports decline to show Noem’s video message on government shutdown

Airports in Las Vegas, Charlotte, Phoenix and Westchester County say the Homeland Security secretary’s video goes against their policy or regulations because of its political content.

In the video, Noem blames Democrats for the federal government shutdown and its impacts on operations to screen travelers. The shutdown has left airports scrambling with flight disruptions.

US rejects bid to buy 167 million tons of coal for less than a penny per ton

The bid’s price for the coal on public lands in Montana reflected the low appetite for coal among utilities turning to cheaper natural gas and renewables such as wind and solar.

It would have been the biggest U.S. government coal sale in more than a decade. But coal emissions are a leading driver of climate change, which scientists say is making weather more extreme. Trump has made reviving the coal industry a centerpiece of his energy agenda, but economists say he’s unlikely to reverse its decline.

A Department of Interior statement Tuesday said the $186,000 bid from the Navajo Transitional Energy Co. didn’t meet the requirements of the Mineral Leasing Act. Agency representatives did not provide further details, and it’s unclear if they will attempt another sale.

Maine Gov. Mills to confront Trump again with US Senate campaign

The New England governor who told Trump to his face that she would see him in court now plans to challenge Maine’s Republican U.S. senator at the ballot box.

Democratic Gov. Janet Mills cited her White House confrontation in her Tuesday launch video. She told The Associated Press: “I’ll stand up to Trump, just as I did in February.”

Mills says she’s running for a broader resistance to Trump and to oust five-term Sen. Susan Collins, who voted for the tax breaks and spending cuts law that reduced food and health care aid for children and low-income Americans.

Other challengers for the Democratic nomination include oyster farmer Graham Platner, who has the backing of Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.

Read more about the Maine senate race

Advocacy group sues Social Security Administration over access to records

Democracy Forward filed a lawsuit against the SSA Tuesday, asking a court to compel the release of public records related to policy changes at the agency.

The plaintiffs allege that SSA’s changes during Trump’s second term — which include mass firings and changes to how benefits are administered — have left millions of retirees and people with disabilities struggling to access the benefits they rely on.

They seek internal memos, communications, and data about the impact of SSA’s policies.

“Transparency isn’t optional — it’s essential,” Democracy Forward President and CEO Skye Perryman said in a statement. “We’re taking action to demand accountability and ensure the public knows what’s happening behind closed doors.”

Democrats rally in front of White House budget office

Congressional Democrats and laid-off workers are gathering outside the White House’s budget office to decry the Trump administration’s moves to fire federal employees during the shutdown.

Sen. Chris Van Hollen, a Maryland Democrat, called it “a lie” and illegal for the White House to use the shutdown to impose mass layoffs.

The Democrats stood behind people that held signs printed with budget director Russ Vought’s face and his quote about wanting to put federal workers “in trauma.”

“When they viciously attack our federal employees, they are viciously attacking the American people,” Van Hollen said.

GOP House Speaker backs funding transfers to pay troops

Mike Johnson says the Trump administration “has every right” to move congressionally-mandated funds around to pay the nation’s troops.

“If the Democrats want to go to court and challenge troops being paid, bring it,” Johnson said at a Capitol press conference.

Moving the funds removes a major pressure point that might have encouraged negotiations over the shutdown. Members of the military were projected to miss their first paycheck on Wednesday.

The Trump administration is exercising vast leeway both to fire workers — drawing complaints from fellow Republicans and lawsuits from employee unions — and to determine who is paid. Military troops and federal law enforcement agents don’t necessarily have to go without pay thanks to other funding sources as well as the billions made available in Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which is now law.

▶ Read more about the latest shutdown related developments

House speaker rallying global support to nominate Trump for the next Nobel Peace Prize

Mike Johnson says he and the speaker of the Israeli Knesset are starting a project to rally global leaders to support Trump’s nomination for next year’s Nobel Peace Prize.

Conservatives have hailed Trump’s effort to broker a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas and say he deserves the annual award.

“Under his leadership, we are witnessing the dawn of a new golden age, not just for America but for the entire free world,” the Louisiana Republican, said at a news conference.

ICE using full-body restraints during deportations, raising concerns over inhumane treatment

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers have been using a full-body restraint device called the WRAP during deportations. The Associated Press spoke to a number of people who said they were placed in the device after they had already been shackled.

The manufacturer says the device is intended for violent individuals, but detainees claim it is used to intimidate or punish them.

ICE’s use of the WRAP has continued despite safety concerns expressed two years ago by a watchdog division of its parent agency, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

A DHS spokesperson says ICE’s use of the restraints is “fully in line with established legal standards.”

▶ Read more from the AP’s investigation into ICE’s use of full-body restraints

Trump’s ‘big bill’ helps pay Coast Guard salaries in shutdown

The administration has begun tapping funds from Trump’s tax breaks and budget law to start paying for priorities during the shutdown — in this case, ensuring the Coast Guard doesn’t go without paychecks.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement that thanks to “the One Big Beautiful Bill, the brave men and women of the US Coast Guard will not miss a paycheck this week.”

Trump had already instructed the Department of Defense to make sure military service members are paid. The Pentagon announced it would do so with $8 billion in unused research and development funds.

The law includes more than $300 billion in new funds for the military as well as for DHS and Trump’s mass deportation agenda.

White House budget office prepared for long shutdown standoff

The office led by budget director Russ Vought also said in a social media post that it will continue implementing reduction-in-force plans to fire federal workers.

The post said the office would “pay the troops, pay law enforcement, continue the RIFs, and wait.”

Many in Washington are digging in for a prolonged government funding fight. The shutdown is already well into its second week.

Pennsylvania man pleads guilty in arson at governor’s mansion while Shapiro’s family slept

A man who scaled an iron security fence, eluded police and used beer bottles filled with gasoline to ignite the occupied Pennsylvania governor’s mansion pleaded guilty Tuesday to attempted murder.

Cody Balmer, 38, was sentenced to 25 to 50 years in prison after he also entered pleas to terrorism, 22 counts of arson, aggravated arson, burglary, aggravated assault of Gov. Josh Shapiro, 21 counts of reckless endangerment and loitering in the April 13 attack that did millions of dollars in damage to the state-owned brick building.

Shapiro and his family were awakened and evacuated hours after celebrating the Jewish holiday of Passover. Balmer told police after turning himself in that he had planned to beat Shapiro with a sledgehammer, according to court documents.

▶ Read more about the attack on the Pennsylvania governor’s mansion

Supreme Court rejects Jones’ appeal of $1.4 billion Sandy Hook judgment

The Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected an appeal from conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and left in place the $1.4 billion judgment against him over his description of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting as a hoax staged by crisis actors.

The Infowars host had argued that a judge was wrong to find him liable for defamation and infliction of emotional distress without holding a trial on the merits of allegations lodged by relatives of victims of the shooting, which killed 20 first graders and six educators in Newtown, Connecticut.

The justices did not comment on their order, which they issued without even asking the families of the Sandy Hook victims to respond to Jones’ appeal.

▶ Read more about Jones’ rejection by the Supreme Court

Barack Obama appears in ad urging California voters to counter Trump

Barack Obama is entering the fight for U.S. House control by appearing in a 30-second ad urging California voters to approve a ballot proposal that could add as many as five Democrat-held House seats from California.

“Republicans want to steal enough seats in Congress to rig the next election and wield unchecked power for two more years,” Obama says, looking directly into the camera. “You can stop Republicans in their tracks.”

Proposition 50 is aimed at offsetting Trump’s moves in Texas and elsewhere to help win more Republican seats in the 2026 midterm election. Voting is underway and concludes Nov. 4. Republicans hold a 219-213 House majority, with three vacancies.

Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom has framed the election as a referendum on all things Trump, who is unpopular in liberal-leaning California outside of his conservative base. Republicans call it a Democratic power grab that would override an independent commission created by voters.

News outlets face Pentagon ouster for refusing to sign defense secretary’s pre-approval rules

Major news organizations say they won’t sign a Defense Department document about its new press rules, making it likely the Trump administration will evict their reporters from the Pentagon.

Pete Hegseth reacted to their refusal by posting a hand-waving emoji on X. His team has said that reporters who don’t acknowledge the policy in writing by Tuesday must turn in badges admitting them to the Pentagon and clear out their workspaces the next day.

The new rules bar journalist access to large swaths of the Pentagon without an escort and say Hegseth can revoke press access to reporters who ask anyone in the Defense Department for information — classified or otherwise — that he has not approved for release.

The New York Times, The Associated Press, the conservative Newsmax television network, The Washington Post, The Atlantic and Reuters, among other outlets, say the policy threatens to punish routine news gathering protected by the First Amendment.

▶ Read more about the Pentagon and the media

Trump complains that the photo of him on Time Magazine is ‘the Worst of All Time’

The president posted a lament on social media early Tuesday morning about a signature subject: his hair.

Trump has long been known for his swoopy blonde hair, but on the latest issue of Time recognizing his ceasefire deal in Gaza, he feels his locks are lacking.

“They ‘disappeared’ my hair, and then had something floating on top of my head that looked like a floating crown, but an extremely small one. Really weird!” the president wrote.

The president also complained that the shot is taken facing up, showing more neck and chin than he seemed to prefer.

“This is a super bad picture, and deserves to be called out,” he wrote. “What are they doing, and why?”