Possible Shutdown Deal, A Blue Wave & a Red Wake-Up Call

COMING UP:

• Syria’s new president Ahmad Al-Sharaa — a former al-Qaeda member who overthrew Bashar al-Assad, ending a 14-year long civil war — is set to visit the White House on Monday, the first Syrian leader to do so. Al-Sharaa, who was once held at the infamous Abu Ghraib prison, has met with Trump twice before this year.
• The world’s leading conference on climate action – COP30 – begins in Brazil on Monday.
• Trump’s son-in-law and advisor Jared Kushner will meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday to discuss the ceasefire deal. Reuters, which first reported the news, says the trip was not announced in advance.

• DEVELOPING: Senate negotiators have agreed in principle to a bipartisan plan that could end the weeks-long government shutdown. The deal would extend federal funding through January and approve full-year appropriations for veterans affairs, agriculture, and legislative operations including Capitol Police and congressional security. It would not, however, extend Affordable Care Act subsidies but would guarantee a December vote on the matter—which would still need 60 votes to pass. Some Republicans have indicated openness to extending the credits but want stricter eligibility requirements. The deal would also reverse Trump-era federal layoffs during the shutdown. The agreement still needs formal approval in a Senate vote expected late Sunday, before moving to the House and then to Trump for final sign-off. The whole process could take several days.
• SHUTDOWN IMPACT: On Friday, the FAA announced it was reducing the number of flights from at least 40 airports. Air traffic controllers — essential workers who work without pay during a shutdown — are showing signs of strain leaving airports short-staffed. Commercial shipping is expected to be impacted, as well. If the shutdown does not end, the Transportation Department says delays could last into the Thanksgiving holiday. (List of affected airports here)
• SNAP DECISIONS: Also on the line, SNAP funding. On Friday, the Supreme Court granted the Trump administration a 48-hour pause on a lower court ruling that required full SNAP payments during the shutdown. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson issued the stay Friday while an appeals court reviews the case. Within hours, the USDA ordered states to “undo” full November payments, directing them to issue only 65% of benefits or risk losing federal funding. States like Massachusetts and Wisconsin, which had already sent out full aid, warned of “catastrophic operational disruptions.” The move jeopardizes food assistance for 42 million Americans who rely on SNAP.
• POWER TRIP: This week, the Supreme court heard arguments in Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump—a case that could redefine the balance of power between the White House and Congress.
  • The Court will decide whether Trump overstepped the executive branch’s authority by using emergency powers to impose sweeping tariffs on nearly all nations, even ones only inhabited by penguins.
  • The law at issue, the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), was designed for targeted sanctions during national emergencies, not broad trade duties. It was also intended to limit executive overreach and preserve Congress’s exclusive constitutional power under Article I to “lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises.” Lower courts already ruled that Trump’s move is illegal, finding that only Congress can set tariffs. The administration argues IEEPA allows the president to “regulate imports,” but critics say that doesn’t mean imposing taxes.
  • During oral arguments, justices zeroed in on the statute’s wording rather than making sweeping statements about presidential power—signaling they may seek a narrow, text-based ruling. The decision could set a lasting precedent on how far a president can go when invoking emergency powers to make policy without Congress. Even if they lose, the administration could use other “cumbersome” but “effective” avenues according to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
  • Learning Resources is an educational toy maker in Illinois affected by Trump’s tariffs.

Election Wrap: Democrats Sweep Key Races, Republicans Rattled

NEW JERSEY

Despite Republicans’ hopes, New Jersey voters chose continuity over change. Democrat Mikie Sherrill defeated Republican Jack Ciattarelli by double digits — the first time since 1961 that one party has held the governor’s office for three straight terms.

Ciattarelli, who came within three points of beating Gov. Phil Murphy in 2021, tried to capitalize on frustration over high living costs — but it didn’t work.

The clearest shift came in Passaic County, a Latino-majority area Trump flipped last year. Sherrill led there by 15 points, according to early results. She also dominated in Essex County, home to Newark’s majority-Black population.

VIRGINIA

Abigail Spanberger will become Virginia’s first female governor, flipping the state from red to blue with the largest margin in 40 years.

Her running mate, Ghazala Hashmi, made history as the first Muslim woman elected to statewide office in U.S. history.

Spanberger won big in Loudoun and Prince William counties, home to thousands of federal workers hurt by the shutdown.

Democrat Jay Jones also won the attorney general’s race despite controversy over violent texts that surfaced mid-campaign.

CALIFORNIA

Voters handed Gov. Gavin Newsom a major win. Prop 50 passed with nearly 65% support, letting Democrats redraw congressional maps and potentially pick up five new House seats.

Newsom reframed the issue as payback for Republican gerrymanders in Texas, and the pitch worked. Billionaire Charles Munger Jr. poured millions into opposing the measure, but Newsom’s team raised $40 million — mostly from first-time small donors.

Republicans immediately sued to block the new map, claiming it violates the 14th and 15th Amendments.

NEW YORK

Zohran Mamdani — the 33-year-old progressive assemblyman — became New York City’s youngest mayor in a century, and the first Muslim and South Asian to hold the job.

He beat Andrew Cuomo and Curtis Sliwa with more than 50% of the vote, in a record turnout of 2 million ballots.

Republicans quickly launched ads tying Democrats nationwide to the “socialist mayor."

Mamdani may matter whether you live in NYC or not. Expect him to become the Democrats' poster boy and the Republicans' scapegoat, locally and nationally ahead of the 2026 midterms.

ACROSS THE COUNTRY

In Georgia, voters elected two Democrats to the Public Service Commission, ending decades of GOP control.

In Mississippi, Democrats broke the GOP supermajority in the state Senate after six years.

In Maine, voters passed Question 2, a new red-flag gun law following the state’s 2023 mass shooting. “Passage of Question 2 marks a rare victory for gun control groups in a state where gun rights activists have long held supremacy over firearms policy by beating back previous referendums and holding sway in the Maine Legislature.”

REPUBLICANS REELING

Trump on Truth Social: “TRUMP WASN’T ON THE BALLOT, AND SHUTDOWN, WERE THE TWO REASONS THAT REPUBLICANS LOST ELECTIONS TONIGHT.”

House Speaker Mike Johnson pretends this is NBD: “What happened last night was blue states and blue cities voted blue,” he said. “No one should read too much into it.”

Fox News making zero sense: “By winning, Democrats are actually losing.”

EXECUTIVE BRANCH

• Trump threatened to send U.S. troops “guns-a-blazing” into Nigeria to stop what he called a “Christian genocide” — surprising even military leaders at the United State Africa Command (AFRICOM), which directs military operations across the continent. “Leaders told the Pentagon they had other priorities, according to three people familiar with the matter, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing operations,” the Washington Post reports.
  • Is there a “Christian genocide” in Africa? In short, no: independent data shows the claim doesn’t hold up. Additionally, Nigeria’s leadership includes many Christians, including its first lady, a pastor. The oversimplified narrative ignores the country’s ethnic and economic conflicts. Analysts note that Nigerian Muslims suffer as much or more from violence, which stems from complex issues like farmer-herder conflicts (caused by climate change, in part), not religious persecution.
  • Critics also argue that Trump’s aid cuts have killed more Nigerians than terrorists, ending programs that once saved 270,000 lives a year. It’s part of a global pattern of leaders weaponizing faith for power while ordinary people turn to it for hope. It’s a familiar authoritarian playbook use by everyone from Putin to China’s Xi Jinping.
  • CNN reports that Trump was watching Fox News when he saw a report on Nigeria that claimed Christians were being targeted by Muslims. Trump was “immediately” angered by it, one of the sources said, before he began rage posting on Truth Social.
• After pardoning Changpeng “CZ” Zhao—founder of crypto exchange Binance, who served four months in prison after pleading guilty to money-laundering charges—Trump told CBS News he had “no idea who he is” and claimed he was told Zhao was a victim of a “witch hunt” by Joe Biden. Zhao’s family reportedly hired a Trump ally to lobby for the pardon, which now raises serious pay-to-play questions: Binance has done extensive business with the Trump family’s crypto venture, World Liberty Financial, earning them millions. The irony? Trump has accused Biden of signing “autopen pardons” without reviewing them himself—exactly what Trump now appears to have done, by his own admission.
• More than half of the donors to Trump’s $300 million ballroom, whose identities are public, have significant conflicts of interest with the government. At least 14 companies face federal enforcement actions or have had other actions withdrawn by the Trump Administration. Additionally, the public donors have $279 billion in government contracts over the last five years. The findings were shared by the consumer advocacy group Public Citizen, founded by Ralph Nader.
• One day before SNAP benefits were set to expire and on Day 31 of a government shutdown — Trump held a swanky Great Gatsby themed party at his Mar-a-Lago resort complete with dancing showgirls in giant cocktail glasses. The book, of course, is set in the roaring 20s just before the Great Depression. It’s unclear whether Trump used taxpayer funds for the party but fyi each trip to Mar-a-Lago costs taxpayers more than $3 million, each.
• Trump has renominated billionaire Jared Isaacman to lead NASA. According to a leaked plan outlining his vision for the space agency obtained by Politico, Isaacman wants to outsource its main responsibilities to private companies and run it “more like a business.” Isaacman wants to turn the scientific research over to companies instead of academia which experts say is “out of touch.” Isaacman was nominated earlier this year but withdrew after Trump’s falling out with Elon Musk, with whom Isaacman is friends. I guess Trump and Musk have made up.
• The DHS will end Temporary Protected Status for thousands of Sudanese refugees in January, giving them 60 days to leave or face deportation. DHS cited “improving security” despite U.N. warnings of renewed civil war. The move follows similar rollbacks for Haitians, Syrians, and Venezuelans fleeing conflict. “South Sudan has also sought to court the Trump administration, taking a small number of deportees from other countries in exchange for some relief from sanctions against its political leaders.”
• The Trump administration has carried out a series of key military strikes on suspected drug-smuggling boats in the Caribbean and Pacific, killing at least 69 — without any due process. Families say many of the victims were day laborers or low-level couriers, not cartel bosses. The White House calls the victims “narco-terrorists,” but lawmakers from both parties are demanding proof of ties. Meanwhile, President Trump warned land strikes into Venezuela may be next. Lawmakers in both parties are demanding proof of the victims’ cartel ties after a Senate attempt to limit Trump’s strike powers failed by one vote. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth defended the attacks, warning traffickers: “We will kill you.”
• Meanwhile, Hegseth has fired at least two dozen generals and admirals without explanation and against the advice of military leaders, for things like having worked with people Trump “loathes,” supporting DEI initiatives, questioning the government’s attacks on vessels in the Caribbean Sea, and on Iran’s alleged nuclear weapons — “actions…without precedent in recent decades,” the New York Times (🎁 gift link) reports. “A new administration has the right to choose military leaders it trusts, said Kori Schake, a defense specialist who served on the National Security Council in the administration of President George W. Bush. But she worried the Trump administration was ‘squandering an enormous amount of talent.’”
• Trump-ally and proud bigot Laura Loomer says she is now a part of the Pentagon press corps. Last month, the real Pentagon press corps — almost all of them, even FOX — turned in their credentials and walked out after Hegseth demanded they agree to new “rules” that would infringe upon their independence. Loomer is notorious for convincing Trump to fire government employees she claims are not loyal to the president. The rest of the press corps, like Loomer, is filled with right wing influencers, not journalists. (AP)
• FBI Director Kash Patel fired, rehired and then fired fired four FBI employees, including two agents, because they were involved in prior agency investigations into Trump. The FBI Agents Association called the move part of "a campaign of erratic and arbitrary retribution.”
  • Patel also fired a 27-year agency veteran in charge of the agency’s aircraft fleet after a recent trip he made to see his girlfriend sing at a wrestling match came under public scrutiny. Patel’s travel is public information — and Patel even posted a photo on social media of him and his girlfriend on that trip. Patel, like all FBI directors, must travel on government planes because of their unique security features—but must reimburse the government for personal travel. The problem? In the past, Patel has criticized other directors for doing the same. Not to mention, taking expensive trips during the government shutdown are not good optics. (Bloomberg)

CONGRESS

• Rep. Nancy Pelosi is retiring from politics after a 38 years. The 85-year old — who is the only female to serve as speaker of the House of Representatives—made the announcement to her constituents by video. (CNN)
• Rep. Jared Golden (D-ME) says he’s will not seek reelection because he’s “tired of the increasing incivility and plain nastiness that are now common” that “our political leaders exhibit.” Golden also cited concerns about political violence and threats and the impact on his family. “As a father, I have to consider whether the good I can achieve outweighs everything my family endures as a result.” (Bangor Daily News)
• Rep. Elise Stefanik (R) announced she is running for governor, challenging Democrat Kathy Hochul in big blue New York, home to city that just elected Zohran Mamdani to mayor. The move is making even Republicans nervous because of the effect her candidacy could have on down ballot candidates like the House — whose control could easily transfer to Democrats after the election.

COURTS

• A federal judge ordered the DOJ to turn over evidence in the case against former FBI Director James Comey after accusing them of choosing to “indict first and investigate later.” Comey was indicted on two counts for allegedly lying to Congress in a prosecution widely seen as politically motivated by Trump’s animus for Comey. (Politico)
• Next on the DOJ’s list — former CIA director under Obama John Brennan. MSNBC reports the agency is preparing grand jury subpoenas for Brennan for his part in investigations into whether Trump colluded with Russia to interfere in the 2020 election, which the president’s lawyers say violated his civil rights. (MSNBC)
• A right-wing group managed to kill a scholarship meant to support minority Black students by arguing it violated an 1871 law named… the Ku Klux Klan Act. The Pacific Legal Foundation sued UC San Diego and the San Diego Foundation alleging that the civil rights law — which was passed to protect the equal rights of African Americans — was meant to protect all students. Both parties settled out of court after the school agreed to rename the scholarship and open it up to all students, including white ones. (Washington Post)
• A US military vet charged with assault for throwing a sandwich at a Customs and Border Patrol agent in DC — and has become affectionately known as “Sandwich Guy” — was acquitted by a jury — which had sandwiches for lunch during deliberations. (WRC-TV)

• The death toll in Gaza has topped 69,000, 241 of whom Israel has killed during a so-called “ceasefire.”
• The UN says Israel has rejected more than 100 aid requests to deliver humanitarian aid. Despite this, the US continues to claim — without evidence — that Israel has allowed in more than the number of aid trucks they agreed to in the ceasefire agreement. “According to the World Food Programme (WFP), only half the required food aid is currently reaching Gaza, while a coalition of Palestinian relief agencies said total aid deliveries amounted to just one-quarter of what was agreed under the ceasefire deal.”
• Israel says Hamas has returned the body of Lt. Hadar Goldin who was killed in Gaza in 2014.
• Palestinians have collectively lost 3 million years of life because of Israel’s genocide, including 1 million years for kids under 15, according to a new study by the Lancet.
• Israel is running a new media campaign to embed foreign journalists in Gaza, controlling what they see and film. The goal, according to Israel’s foreign ministry, is to push back against “anti-Israel” reporting. Around a dozen reporters — including from CNN and NPR — joined the escorted trips and aired reports that repeated Israeli talking points, with no interviews from Palestinians or aid workers. For two years, Israel has blocked all independent press access to Gaza, despite calls from international media groups to let journalists in. Since October 2023, Israeli attacks have killed more than 200 Palestinian journalists, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists — the deadliest toll ever recorded.
• YouTube has taken down the channels of three Palestinian human rights groups, wiping out more than 700 hours of video evidence of alleged Israeli war crimes. The company says it had to comply with State Department sanctions because the groups cooperated with the International Criminal Court’s probe into Israeli officials. Human rights advocates call it censorship, saying YouTube is helping erase proof of abuse and shielding those responsible. The move raises bigger questions about how U.S. policy and tech platforms are working together to silence documentation of war crimes.
• Illegal settlers in the occupied West Bank continue to torment Palestinian olive farmers with impunity. “This year’s harvest season has also seen some of the most brazen violence in recent years. Palestinian olive pickers have been attacked at least 259 times since the harvest season began last month… Many of these attacks have been widely documented and videos have surfaced online, showing some Palestinians left bloodied and beaten… Palestinians say they have no recourse to seek justice when they are attacked, because they see the army as abetting the settlers.” The latest attacks include one on a Reuters journalist who was injured.
• Israel’s top military lawyer resigned and was later arrested after admitting she leaked surveillance footage showing Israeli soldiers allegedly sexually assaulting a Palestinian detainee at the notorious Sde Teiman prison. The July 2024 video reportedly shows troops sodomizing a prisoner with a knife, leaving him with gruesome injuries that required emergency surgery. As Zeteo points out, in Israel, the real crime is the leak of the video -not the sexual assault for which no one has been held accountable.

• SUDAN: Two regions are now in famine, according to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, the leading authority on hunger and famine in the world.
• MEXICO: President Claudia Sheinbaum says she’ll press charges against a man who sexually assaulted her in public and will review the country’s sexual harassment laws to better protect women. “If this happens to the president, where does that leave all the young women in our country?” she said.
• PHILIPPINES: Nearly a million people have been forced to evacuate when Typhoon Fung-wong made landfall.

• At least six people have died from a listeria outbreak linked to pasta.
• Violence in major cities is down significantly this year despite Trump’s claims that they’re turning into “hellholes” where he needs to send the National Guard.
• Former Vice President under George W. Bush and architect of the war on terror Dick Cheney died on Monday. He was 84.
• Also on Monday, actress Diane Ladd of “Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore” fame and Laura Dern’s mother also passed. She was 89.
• Thirteen people died this week after a UPS plane crashed in Louisville just after takeoff.

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