Top Items:
Marc Caputo / Axios:
Scoop: White House memo says furloughed federal workers aren't entitled to back pay — Furloughed federal workers aren't guaranteed compensation for their forced time off during the government shutdown, according to a draft White House memo described to Axios by three sources.
Discussion:
NBC News, NPR, Politico, HuffPost, New Republic, Fox News, The Hill, Raw Story, CNN, Breitbart, CNBC, Daily Kos, MeidasTouch News, Semafor, New York Sun, UPI, Mediaite, The Independent, E&E News, Blue Virginia, The Daily Signal, Forbes, The Free Press, NewsNation, Defense One, HotAir, The Guardian, Business Insider, NewsMax.com, CBS News, IJR and Washington Examiner
RELATED:
Politico:
Trump's off-script comments cause shutdown headaches for GOP … Within hours, Trump walked it back: “I am happy to work with the Democrats on their Failed Healthcare Policies, or anything else, but first they must allow our Government to re-open,” he wrote on Truth Social hours after his initial comments.
Discussion:
Washington Post, NPR, HuffPost and The Hill
Mia McCarthy / Politico:
Republican leaders clash on emergency troop pay vote — Speaker Mike Johnson said the House could come back to pass emergency legislation to pay troops during the government shutdown. Senate Majority Leader John Thune wasn't willing to go there. The unusual tactical disagreement between …
Discussion:
NewsNation, Raw Story and The Hill
Andrew Solender / Axios:
Congress erupts over Trump's shutdown backpay threat — Members of Congress in both parties bristled Tuesday at a White House memo arguing that federal workers who have been furloughed as part of the government shutdown are not necessarily entitled to backpay.
Discussion:
Raw Story and New Republic
GovExec.com:
OMB deletes reference to law guaranteeing backpay to furloughed feds from shutdown guidance — The Office of Management and Budget on Friday quietly revised a shutdown guidance document to remove references to a law passed in 2019 to guarantee that all federal workers are provided backpay at the conclusion of a lapse in appropriations.
Discussion:
NBC News, Daily Kos, Washington Examiner, New Republic and EPIC for America
Jonathan Cohn / The Bulwark:
Democrats Are Winning the Shutdown Fight — HERE'S HOW YOU CAN TELL Democrats have the upper hand in the week-old shutdown fight: Marjorie Taylor Greene just endorsed their key demand. — “WE HAVE TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT THE ABSOLUTELY INSANE COST OF INSURANCE FOR AMERICANS,” the Georgia House Republican tweeted Monday evening.
Discussion:
New York Times, The Hill, Washington Examiner, Breitbart, USA Today, UPI, Washington Times, NewsMax.com and Los Angeles Times
Lisa Mascaro / Associated Press:
Trump administration threatens no back pay for federal workers in shutdown
Trump administration threatens no back pay for federal workers in shutdown
Discussion:
Lawyers, Guns & Money, Bangor Daily News, Axios, The Hill, Raw Story, Washington Examiner, Washington Times, Quartz, The Parnas Perspective, WAGA-TV and Bloomberg
Tony Romm / New York Times:
White House Signals It May Try to Deny Back Pay to Furloughed Federal Workers
White House Signals It May Try to Deny Back Pay to Furloughed Federal Workers
Discussion:
NBC News, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, The Hill, New Jersey Online, UPI and CBS News
Brett Samuels / The Hill:
Trump says backpay for furloughed workers 'depends on who we're talking about'
Tony Romm / New York Times:
Mass Layoffs Trump Is Threatening in Shutdown Fight May Be Illegal
Mass Layoffs Trump Is Threatening in Shutdown Fight May Be Illegal
Discussion:
Washington Times
Josephine Walker / Axios:
“Insurrectionists”: Trump blasts Democrats over shutdown, immigration — President Trump called Democrats “insurrectionists” Tuesday and slammed the left for what he described as “kamikaze” attacks on America, invoking increasingly warlike rhetoric to describe the opposition party.
Discussion:
BBC, Diplomatic,, CNN, Washington Post, NBC News, Reuters, WAGA-TV, Townhall, Newsweek, The Independent, The Daily Signal, New Jersey Online, New Republic, ABC7, Fox News, Al Jazeera, Washington Times, The Parnas Perspective, NewsMax.com, Mediaite, El País, Washington Examiner, Straight Arrow News, The Intercept, New York Times and IJR
RELATED:
Associated Press:
Texas National Guard arrives in Illinois, as Gov. Pritzker calls for end of Trump administration's ‘authoritarian march’
Tina Sfondeles / Chicago Sun Times:
Pentagon chief Hegseth more interested in pushups than talking with Illinois leaders, Pritzker says
Pentagon chief Hegseth more interested in pushups than talking with Illinois leaders, Pritzker says
Discussion:
WBEZ Chicago
NBC News:
Airport delays hit second day amid government shutdown — Staffing shortages have already caused delays at airports in Denver; Burbank, California; and Newark, New Jersey. — Flight delays across the United States stretched into a second day Tuesday as the Federal Aviation Administration braced …
Discussion:
ABC7, Politico, NewsMax.com, The Hill, 77 WABC, Daily Kos, Semafor, NPR, Washington Times, New York Sun, CBS News, Mercury News, Reuters, The Independent and Fox Business
RELATED:
CNN:
Delays spread to major airports across the country, as the seventh day of government shutdown impacts travelers
Delays spread to major airports across the country, as the seventh day of government shutdown impacts travelers
Discussion:
CNBC, New York Times, BBC, Breitbart, Fortune, Washington Examiner, Chicago Sun Times, Los Angeles Times, ABC7, RedState, New York Post, Fox Business, The Hill and New York Sun, more at Mediagazer »
Hailey Fuchs / Politico:
Bondi tells Schiff he should ‘apologize’ for impeaching Trump — Just weeks weeks after Sen. Adam Schiff was called a “buffoon” and a “fraud” by FBI Director Kash Patel during a Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing, the California Democrat was similarly pilloried Tuesday by Attorney General Pam Bondi.
Discussion:
NewsNation, New Republic, RedState, The Independent, Raw Story, The Gateway Pundit, New York Sun, Mediaite and CBS News
RELATED:
April Rubin / Axios:
Bondi dodges senators' questions on Comey, Epstein probes
Discussion:
NBC News, Rick Wilson's …, NPR, The Hill, All Rise News, CBS News, PBS NewsHour, Salon, New York Magazine, twitchy.com, Raw Story, NOTUS, Forbes, CNBC, The Guardian, Mediaite, FOX 32 Chicago, Fox News, Straight Arrow News, IPM Newsroom and Oregonian
South Side Weekly:
Federal Agents Storm South Shore Building, Detaining Families and Children — Families were woken by flashbangs and helicopters as hundreds of federal agents raided their homes. Days later, neighbors are still searching for the missing. — Residents of a South Shore apartment building …
Discussion:
Chicago Sun Times
Alex Miller / Fox News:
Senate Republicans confirm more than 100 Trump nominees as government shutdown continues — Mass confirmation includes ambassadors and senior officials as shutdown enters seventh day — Senate Republicans confirmed a staggering tranche of President Donald Trump's nominees on Tuesday as the government shutdown continues.
Discussion:
Axios, The Hill, Bloomberg, Breitbart, Washington Examiner, One America News Network, RedState, Deseret News, Washington Times, Plain Dealer and Townhall
RELATED:
Evan Bush / NBC News:
Senate confirms scientist with ties to ‘Sharpiegate’ as top NOAA official
Discussion:
New York Times and The Hill
Joe Walsh / CBS News:
Herschel Walker confirmed as U.S. ambassador to the Bahamas
Herschel Walker confirmed as U.S. ambassador to the Bahamas
Discussion:
Reuters, Washington Post and IJR
Clyde Haberman / New York Times:
Saul Zabar, Smoked Fish Czar of Upper West Side, Dies at 97 — He led his parents' appetizing store, Zabar's, for more than 70 years, turning it into an institution synonymous with New York. — Saul Zabar, who across more than seven decades as a principal owner of the Upper West Side food emporium bearing …
Discussion:
NextDraft and New York Post
Elizabeth Lopatto / The Verge:
Memo to Bari Weiss Re: CBS News: You're doomed … To: Bari Weiss — RE: Good luck, babe! — I honestly cannot believe you've willingly decided to go into the worst kind of job that exists: management at a dying company. … Managing sucks! It sucks even when you like the people you're managing and it's a low-stress position!
Discussion:
Poynter, Lawyers, Guns & Money, PinkNews and Semafor, more at Mediagazer »
Garrett M. Graff / Doomsday Scenario:
There is no budget “deal” to be made — President Trump has so broken the constitutional framework as to make joint normal, responsible government impossible. … The original budget justification for the State Department for FY2025, which ended September 30th last week, stretched to hundreds of pages and totaled nearly $60 billion.
Luke Rosiak / The Daily Wire:
Man With 200 Explosives And Leftist Manifesto Arrested Outside Supreme Court Event At Church: Police — Two days after a Biden judge gave light sentence to attempted Kavanaugh assassin, church event historically attended by conservative justices targeted — Washington, D.C. …
Discussion:
WJLA-TV, RedState, The Post Millennial, The Gateway Pundit, The Hill, HotAir, The Daily Caller and Townhall
Washington Post:
Six surgeons general: It's our duty to warn the nation about RFK Jr. — We took an oath to declare dangers when we found them. We're doing that again today. — The writers are all former U.S. surgeons general. — As former U.S. surgeons general appointed by every Republican …
Discussion:
The Guardian, MSNBC, Truthout and New Jersey Online
RELATED:
Avery Lotz / Axios:
“Unprecedented threat”: Six former surgeons general sound alarm on RFK Jr.
“Unprecedented threat”: Six former surgeons general sound alarm on RFK Jr.
Discussion:
Washington Times
Thomas B. Edsall / New York Times:
Trump Is Not Afraid of Civil War. Neither Is Stephen Miller. — President Trump has unleashed new weaponry in his war against Democrats, liberals and the left. Over the past four weeks, he has initiated what amounts to a unique form of partisan civil war designed to amass power …
Discussion:
New York Magazine and Lawyers, Guns & Money
Alex Isenstadt / Axios:
Scoop: White House says it has funding to save food aid program — The White House has found funding to keep afloat a food aid program that had been threatened by the government shutdown. … - The program — which provides vouchers for healthy food, breastfeeding assistance and nutritional education …
Discussion:
CNN, The Hill, FOX 32 Chicago, UPI, RedState, NewsMax.com, New York Post, Le·gal In·sur·rec·tion, Newsweek, The Independent, al.com, IJR, Washington Times and Washington Examiner
Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai / TechCrunch:
ICE bought vehicles equipped with fake cell towers to spy on phones — U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) paid $825,000 earlier this year to a company that manufactures vehicles equipped with various technologies for law enforcement, including fake cellphone towers known as …
Anna Betts / The Guardian:
Federal agents taunted Chicago woman to ‘do something’ before shooting her, attorney claims — Officers say woman was in chase ending in ramming border patrol vehicle during Trump's immigration crackdown — The attorney for a woman who was shot by federal agents in Chicago over the weekend …
Discussion:
New Republic, The Post Millennial, twitchy.com, Truthout, Raw Story, ABC7 and emptywheel
Ian Millhiser / Vox:
The Supreme Court fights over whether medical expertise actually exists — On Tuesday, the Supreme Court broke from its increasingly common practice of deciding important cases without holding an oral argument or even explaining the reasoning of its decision, to hear a case about whether states …
Discussion:
New York Times, Washington Post, CNN, SCOTUSblog, Ms. Magazine, RedState, Al Jazeera, NPR, The Federalist, The Daily Caller, Roll Call, The Colorado Sun, Gay City News, LGBTQ Nation, NewsMax.com, Politico, Law Dork, Advocate, Deseret News, Plain Dealer, Los Angeles Times, UPI, Fox News, PBS NewsHour, Althouse and CBS News
Jessica Valenti / Abortion, Every Day:
Cops Used 83K Cameras to Track an Abortion Patient—on Her Abuser's Tip — Back in May, 404 Media published a bombshell report: Texas police tried to track down an abortion patient using an automatic license plate reader (ALPR), accessing more than 83,000 cameras across the country.
Discussion:
404 Media and Electronic Frontier Foundation
Eric He / Politico:
Gov. Gavin Newsom targets antisemitism in California schools with new law … “At a time when antisemitism and bigotry are rising nationwide and globally, these laws make clear: our schools must be places of learning, not hate,” Newsom said in a statement. — Much of the requirements in the law …
Discussion:
Governor of California, LGBTQ Nation, Washington Examiner, Associated Press and Los Angeles Times
Sabrina Moreno / Axios:
Jay Jones scandal throws Virginia Democrats into crisis — A scandal over resurfaced texts from Virginia Democratic attorney general candidate Jay Jones has Democrats in a catch-22. … - But standing by him risks reinforcing Republican attacks about double standards on political violence.
Jack Jenkins / RNS:
In Chicago, clergy and faith-based protesters say ICE is threatening their religious freedom — (RNS) — Last month, the Rev. David Black stood in front of a Chicago-area U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility and spread his arms wide. Adorned in all black and wearing a clerical collar …

