Desi Weekly News Digest 

NATIONAL

The U.S. government is shut down as of October 1: The Continuing Resolution (spending bill) passed by the House failed to garner enough votes in the Senate, where it needed 60 votes. Lacking a budget, the government was forced to shut down. Senate Democrats sought to continue the subsidies for health insurance premiums under the ACA to help poorer Americans access affordable healthcare. They were unable to negotiate with President Trump, who reportedly told them to “F%$# off.” Republicans have been aggressively spreading the lie that Democrats are “asking for healthcare for illegal immigrants”, which is not a thing. (see here for impacts of the shutdown) BBC

Private payrolls declined in September by 32,000 in key ADP report: Private payrolls saw their biggest decline in 2 1⁄2 years during September, a further sign of labor market weakening that compounds the data blackout accompanying the U.S. government shutdown. CNBC

DEPARTMENT OF INCOMPETENCE

Trump restores $187M in anti-terror cuts to NY in major reversal: The president said he would restore the funding to the NYPD, FDNY, Port Authority and other New York state agencies that were earlier slashed, without explaining why the money was cut on his watch. (Insiders say he was not aware of the cuts made by Secretary Noem.) YAHOO

White House official inadvertently reveals plans to send elite army unit to Portland: Anthony Salisbury, a top deputy to Stephen Miller, the influential White House policy adviser, was observed using Signal in a public place to discuss a plan to deploy the army’s 82nd airborne division to Portland. GUARDIAN

INTERNATIONAL

Israel kills 70 despite Trump saying it has ‘stopped bombing’ Gaza: Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip have killed at least 70 Palestinians over the last 24 hours, even as US President Donald Trump says Israel has “temporarily stopped the bombing” to give his plan “a chance”. It comes after Hamas submitted its response to Trump’s Gaza plan, with the group agreeing to hand over administration of the territory to Palestinian technocrats and to free all Israeli captives in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. AL JAZEERA

DEMOCRACY IN DANGER

Apple removes ICEBlock app after criticism from Trump administration: Apple has removed several programs from its App Store that alert users to sightings of immigration agents after Attorney General Pam Bondi demanded they be taken down. NBC

Trump administration uses taxpayer dollars to blame Democrats for government shutdown: The Trump administration is blaming Democrats for the government shutdown in internal federal agency communications and on public agency websites, a move that experts say may be a violation of federal ethics laws. NPR (please donate to them)

Trump defends use of the U.S. military against the 'enemy within': Trump said he told Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth that the U.S. "should use some of these dangerous cities as training grounds for our military," a reference to the Democratic-run cities that he has long said have high crime rates that make them uninhabitable. NPR (THIS IS ALARMING!!!)

In court filings, Oregon Police Slam Trump’s Portland Takeover: Top law enforcement officials in Oregon said in court filings Monday that President Donald Trump’s deployment of National Guard troops to Portland was unwarranted and could undermine public safety by provoking larger protests. DEMOCRACY DOCKET

CORRUPTION ALERT

Trump offers Qatar, which gave him a fancy plane, a NATO-like security guarantee: The White House published an executive order on Wednesday vowing to defend Qatar in the event of an attack from another country, a remarkable security guarantee for a single country akin to NATO’s Article 5. MSNBC

Trump administration knocks out at least 15 oversight websites, saying IGs 'lied to the public': At least 15 government oversight websites were down — and with them, access to watchdog reports and required hotline and whistleblower links — as of Wednesday evening. That's not due to the federal shutdown that began at midnight; it's a deliberate move by the White House, whose Office of Management and Budget is withholding funds from the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency, or CIGIE. NEXTGOV

GOOD NEWS FOR PROGRESSIVES

California will not provide funding for ‘sell-out' universities, Newsom says: Gov. Gavin Newsom is threatening to withhold billions in state funds from any California college that signs onto an agreement crafted by President Donald Trump's administration requiring schools to agree to support the President's education agenda to have access to federal dollars. The 10-page "Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education" requires universities to adhere to rules written by the Trump administration in a variety of areas, including admissions, hiring, free speech on campus, teaching and the use of endowments. KCRA

FDA quietly approved a generic abortion pill ahead of shutdown: The Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday quietly approved a generic form of mifepristone, one of the two medications used in most U.S. abortions.. NBC

JUST THE HEADLINES

Federal officer blasts chemical spray into vocal but nonviolent Portland protester. 

Robert Morris, a former Trump campaign spiritual adviser, pleads guilty to child sex abuse. (birds of a feather?)

MAGA’s Top “Voter Fraud” Watchdog Votes in a Swing State. He Doesn’t Live There. 

Google appears to have blocked AI search results for the query “does trump show signs of dementia” as well as other questions about his mental acuity, even though it will show AI results for similar searches about other presidents.

THE EPSTEIN FILES CANNOT BE RELEASED NOW BECAUSE OF THE SHUTDOWN

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