What to know today
- SHUTDOWN DAY 21: Republican senators had lunch with President Donald Trump at the White House today in an apparent show of solidarity as the government shutdown enters its 21st day. The Senate rejected the House-passed short-term spending bill for the 11th time yesterday.
- TRUMP-PUTIN SUMMIT: Plans for a summit between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Budapest, Hungary, are "on hold" because Trump believes both sides in the Russia-Ukraine conflict are not ready to seriously talk peace, a senior White House official said.
- VANCE IN ISRAEL: Vice President JD Vance traveled to Israel today as the Trump administration works to secure the fragile ceasefire it helped broker between Israel and Hamas after fighting broke out over the weekend.
- JAN 6. RIOTER ARRESTED: A Jan. 6 defendant who was among the hundreds Trump pardoned in January was arrested and charged with making a “credible death threat” against House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y.
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Congressional Republicans complain after Trump says U.S. may buy beef from Argentina
Republicans on both sides of the Capitol are publicly and privately pushing back against Trump’s idea of importing beef from Argentina, with some making direct pleas to the White House to reverse course.
The issue came up during Senate Republicans’ visit to the White House today, according to Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., and Seb. Deb Fischer, R-Neb. Fischer said she met with Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins earlier today to discuss her concerns.
“It came up,” Thune told reporters when he was asked whether the policy was discussed at the lunch at the White House. “I represent a beef-producing state. We have four times as many cattle as people.”
Fischer said, “I’m really concerned about the direction that the president’s comments have shown that he may take.”
Fischer posted on X today that she has “deep concerns” with the proposed policy, saying, “I strongly encourage the Trump administration to focus on trade deals that benefit our ag producers—not imports that will do more harm than good.”
Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., runs a cow-calf operation in his home state and said he spoke to Trump today about how, while cattle prices are low, foreign-owned meat packing facilities are setting the price Americans pay at the table.
“I think the president has definitely identified a problem we have,” Mullin said. “But the conversation is, is, you know, much bigger, and the president and I had a great conversation about it today.”
Trump made comments Sunday about the U.S. buying beef from Argentina on Air Force One. “We would buy some beef from Argentina,” he said, “If we do that, that will bring our beef prices down.”
On the House side, a Republican who represents a ranch and cattle-heavy district raised concerns on a Republican conference call today about the idea of Trump’s importing beef from Argentina, according to a GOP source, saying they want more information about it.
Eight House Republicans also sent a letter asking the White House for more information about the policy, adding: “Any import policy must hold foreign suppliers to those same rigorous standards. Introducing beef from countries with inconsistent safety or inspection records could undermine the confidence that U.S. ranchers have worked decades to earn.”
“In recent days, we’ve heard concerns from producers regarding reports that the U.S. may import beef from Argentina,” Rep. Julie Fedorchak, R-N.D., wrote about the letter sent to Trump. “My @HouseGOP colleagues joined me in asking for clarity on the admin’s plans.”
Democratic senator begins overnight speech protesting Trump
Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., is in the middle of a long speech on the Senate floor, speaking out against Trump. Merkley started at 6:23 p.m., and he’s expected to go as long as he can, an aide said.
Earlier this year, Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., spoke for 25 hours and 4 minutes in a speech that broke the record for the longest speech in Senate history.
The speech is already drawing criticism from Senate Republicans who say Merkley is forcing Senate staffers and Capitol Police officers to work overnight while not getting paid because of the government shutdown.
U.S. military may not have resources to continue paying troops during shutdown
U.S. troops have received their pay during the government shutdown for the Oct. 15 pay period, as Trump ordered on Oct.11, according to two defense officials. But as of now, there is nothing in place to ensure that troops are paid on their next pay date, Oct. 31.
Trump ordered Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to use $8 billion of unobligated funds from the Pentagon’s research and development account to pay troops for the mid-month October pay date, but that covered only one pay cycle, leaving nothing for the next pay day, which is just 10 days away, according to Todd Harrison, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington.
Basic pay and allowances for each pay cycle cost about $6.5 billion, according to Harrison. That means that one of those payment cycles — troops are paid twice each month — would be covered by the reallocation of funds. Another $1.5 billion is paid into trust funds, retirement pay and other such benefits, he said.
Those costs could also be paid out of the reallocation but may not be initially. Harrison said he believes that those payments could be forgone temporarily and that the Pentagon could focus on simply paying the troops the $6.5 billion using the $8 billion.
Bottom line: Without further congressional action or some other intervention, U.S. troops — both active-duty and National Guard members on federal activation — will not be paid in 10 days.
No bipartisan discussions are happening regarding Congress' passing legislation that would provide for the military to be paid.
The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Embattled Trump nominee withdraws
Paul Ingrassia, Trump’s pick for a top watchdog position, announced today that he was withdrawing from consideration because he did not have enough Republican support to be confirmed.
“I will be withdrawing myself from Thursday’s HSGAC hearing to lead the Office of Special Counsel because unfortunately I do not have enough Republican votes at this time,” he said, referring to the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee, which would review his nomination.
Trump nominated Ingrassia to lead the Office of Special Counsel, an independent agency that protects federal employees from prohibited personnel practices, such as retaliation for whistleblowing.
Ingrassia had come under scrutiny in recent weeks after Politico reported that a colleague had accused him of sexual harassment, citing three unnamed administration officials. In a new article yesterday, Politico reported on a text chat in which Ingrassia allegedly sent messages saying that he had a “Nazi streak” and that Martin Luther King Jr. Day should be “tossed in the seventh circle of hell.”
Ingrassia’s lawyer, Edward Paltzik, pointed last night to a previous statement denying Ingrassia had “harassed any coworkers — female or otherwise, sexually or otherwise — in connection with any employment.” Paltzik suggested the text messages reported yesterday may not be authentic and added that “even if the texts are authentic, they clearly read as self-deprecating and satirical humor.”
Trump says Putin summit now would have been 'waste of time'
Trump was asked about the Putin summit's being put on hold and said he didn't see the point of having one right now.
“I don’t want to have a wasted meeting. I don’t want to have a waste of time,” he said.
"We did all of these great deals, great peace deals. They’re all peace deals, agreements, solid agreements, every one of them, but this one, and I said go to the line. Go to the line of battle, the battlefield lines. And you pull back and you go home, and everybody takes some time off, because you got two countries that are killing each other,” Trump said.
"So we'll see what happens," he added.
White House considering pulling controversial nominee after GOP backlash
The White House is considering pulling its nomination of Paul Ingrassia to lead the Office of Special Counsel, and the possibility was discussed during Trump’s lunch with Republican senators in the Rose Garden today, according to two officials familiar with the discussion.
The development comes amid growing backlash to Ingrassia from Senate Republicans. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., told reporters yesterday that his nomination was “not going to pass” and that he thought the White House should pull it.
Asked by NBC News today whether he thinks the White House will pull the nomination, Thune said: “I think they’ll have something official to say about that, but you know, you know what we’ve said, and you’ll probably hear from them soon.”
Ingrassia would need to get support from a simple majority of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, where Republicans hold an 8-7 advantage, to advance to the full Senate. Three Republican senators on the panel have said they will oppose Ingrassia, meaning his nomination would not advance to the full Senate.
Jeffries blasts Trump's Jan. 6 pardons after former defendant charged with making threats against him
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries blasted Trump’s Jan. 6 pardons after one of the pardoned rioters was arrested and charged with making credible threats against him.
Jeffries, D-N.Y., said there were consequences to the pardons “beyond me.”
“There are consequences when these extremists who are part of the Trump administration label the entirety of the Democratic Party as terrorists or criminals, there are consequences to that beyond us,” he said.
“We all know what we’ve signed up for, but this, this pain being visited upon the American people because of actions taken by Donald Trump supported by House Republicans and Senate Republicans on day one of his presidency,” he added.
WIC programs can stay afloat through month's end — but November could bring new hurdles
States have largely avoided disruptions to their WIC programs during the government shutdown so far, despite fears that some programs would have to suspend food assistance.
Many state health departments say they have the funding to maintain operations of the federal program, known in full as the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children, through the end of October. That’s thanks in large part to a $300 million infusion from the Agriculture Department.
But the National WIC Association, a nonprofit advocacy group representing state and local WIC agencies, warned this afternoon that “millions of families could lose access to their WIC benefits as early as November 1 unless the Trump Administration provides additional emergency funds next week.” The group called on the administration to allocate another $300 million to keep programs afloat through the first two weeks of November.
WIC provides free, healthy food to low-income pregnant women, new moms and children under 5.
A USDA spokesperson said Tuesday that the agency “will utilize tariff revenue to fund WIC for the foreseeable future.”
Before it stepped in to offer temporary funding, a few states had been forced to furlough staff members, out new members on waitlists or cut administrative funding to local agencies, according to the National WIC Association.
Georgia Machell, the group’s president, said some states may have to start making contingency plans as early as next week.
The Pennsylvania Health Department, for example, said it had $13.8 million in federal contingency funds to continue providing WIC benefits through the end of the month. But a spokesperson said that without action to end the shutdown, “we cannot predict an exact date of when funding will run out.” The Georgia Public Health Department similarly said its WIC benefits could be disrupted if the shutdown lasts beyond October.
GOP Sen. Thom Tillis calls White House ballroom construction 'bad optics'
Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., told NBC News he considers the ongoing demolition and construction at the White House "bad optics" because of the government shutdown.
"It's a function room," he said of the ballroom construction.
“We’ve got staff here that are taking out loans, no-interest loans, to pay their bills while they’re not getting paid, that sort of stuff,” Tillis said. “I just think it’s bad optics.”
Chuck Schumer endorses Janet Mills for Senate in Maine
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer officially backed Maine Gov. Janet Mills for the Senate, expanding on tacit signs of support for her. Mills said when she launched her campaign that Schumer encouraged her to run.
“We think that Janet Mills is the best candidate to retire Susan Collins,” the Republican incumbent, Schumer said. “She’s a tested two-term governor, and the people of Maine have an enormous amount of affection and respect for her.”
Mills joined the race for Collins' seat last week, and she faces a contested Democratic primary that includes Bernie Sanders-endorsed Graham Platner, who recently apologized for past internet posts about police, rural Americans and others that have come to light since he became a political candidate.
Schumer declined to say whether he considered Platner’s comments to be disqualifying, saying he’ll “let the people of Maine decide” that.
