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Federal judge throws out cases against Trump critics
A federal judge has dismissed criminal charges against critics of U.S. President Trump, FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James. The judge found that the former White House staffer, Lindsey Halligan, was “unlawfully appointed” to her role by Trump’s attorney general, Pam Bondi. The ruling will see two cases that Trump has publicly called for thrown out as he pressured the Justice Department to move against high-profile individuals who had criticised him and led investigations into his conduct. After the case was thrown out, Comey posted a video to Instagram expressing his gratitude. "This case mattered to me personally, obviously, but it matters most because a message has to be sent that the president of the United States cannot use the Department of Justice to target his political enemies," Comey said. "I don't care what your politics are. You have to see that it is fundamentally un-American and a threat to the rule of law that keeps all of us free." Comey’s lawyers argued that Bondi did not have legal authority to appoint Halligan to the role. In her ruling, District Judge Cameron McGowan Currie said she agreed with this sentiment. "I agree with Mr Comey that the Attorney Gene
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US government's DOGE reportedly disbanded
The United States’ Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) initiative has reportedly disbanded with eight months remaining in its mandate, after spearheading massive cuts to the federal government earlier this year. DOGE was created by an executive order in January, and originally led by Elon Musk. The government’s Office of Personnel Management (OPM), which manages human resources, has taken over many of DOGE’s tasks, Reuters reported. “That doesn’t exist,” OPM director Scott Kupor told Reuters when asked about DOGE’s current status. According to Kupor, DOGE is no longer a “centralised entity”. Musk, DOGE’s unofficial director and figurehead, left the initiative in May following pushback from cabinet officials. Former senior DOGE officials have taken other roles in the Trump administration, including at the National Design Studio, a newly formed government website design body. Acting DOGE administrator Amy Gleason became an adviser to Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in March. DOGE was initially tasked with cutting the government’s spending and workforce until July 2026. Kupor projected in August that there would be 300,000 fewer federal government employees in December 2025 than in J
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Hassett: US govt workers can expect back pay next week
White House economic advisor Kevin Hassett said federal workers can expect back pay for the time they were furloughed during the government shutdown in their bank accounts early next week. This comes just a day after President Donald Trump signed a bill officially marking the end of the longest government shutdown in U.S. history. “There really has been an aggressive effort to get people to get their checks as soon as possible,” Hassett told reporters. The timing of the payments might be affected depending on the agencies where employees work. According to federal law, government employees who are furloughed during a shutdown must be paid for the time they were out of work at the standard rate of pay “at the earliest date possible, regardless of scheduled pay dates”. In an email obtained by NBC News, Health and Human Services employees were told the agency would try and get furloughed employees' paychecks with back pay on or before 21 November. “Superchecks” for pay spanning 1 October through to 1 November will be sent out to members of different departments in the coming days, depending on the department. Following the government reopening, multiple federal agencies have also told their employees to report to
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Longest ever US government shutdown comes to an end
United States President Donald Trump has signed a bill officially marking the end of the longest federal government shutdown in American history. This comes just hours after the House voted the bill through, which cleared the Senate at the start of the week. The final vote in the House was 222-209, with nearly all Republicans voting for the bill, along with a handful of Democrats who broke party lines. The more than 40-day shutdown was the longest in U.S. history, breaking a previous record set in 2019, both under the Trump administration. The stalemate was set off over an Obamacare program, which is vehemently opposed by Republicans, and the funding surrounding it. The Affordable Care Act's enhanced tax credits for insurance premiums are set to expire by the end of the year and will raise health care costs for millions, leaving Democrats refusing to vote through any temporary funding resolutions that didn't address those subsidies, and the GOP repeatedly rejected negotiating during the shutdown. Now, after six weeks, the federal government will resume operations, but the spill-over impact to other federal employees and the subsequent spike of cancelled and delayed flights is expected to continue without immediat
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US House will soon vote on Senate's deal to end shutdown
The United States House of Representatives will vote on a deal to end the ongoing government shutdown this week, after the Senate passed a bill to fund the government today. The shutdown began on 1 October, and is the longest in U.S. history. The Senate's bill would fund the government at current levels until the end of January, with eight Democratic caucus members siding with Republicans to pass the bill. The bill will now advance to the House, and then must be signed by U.S. President Donald Trump to become law. Trump has backed the deal to end the shutdown. “Based on everything I’m hearing, they haven’t changed anything [in a potential deal], and we have support from enough Democrats, and we’re going to be opening up our country.” According to Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, a Republican, there will be an official 36-hour notice before the House votes on the deal later this week. The House has been out of session at Johnson’s direction since initially passing a funding proposal in late September. Johnson reportedly told House Republicans that he plans for a House vote on Wednesday. Earlier proposals to fund the government failed after Democrats called for funding bills to include an extension of existing he

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Senate passes deal towards ending government shutdown
An end to the record-breaking United States government shutdown is one step closer after the Senate voted in favour of ending the stalemate. The shutdown, which has lasted for 40 days, is the longest in U.S. history, breaking the previous record from 2019, with both shutdowns occurring under Trump administrations. However, today the Senate has voted to end the shutdown at 60-40, after a deal was reached with a key group of eight Senate Democratic centrists and Senate GOP leaders. The sixty votes included eight Democrats who crossed the floor to vote with Republicans and support the funding package, which will now go back to the House of Representatives to be passed for a second time. Finally, the bill will be sent to President Donald Trump for his signature. The Senate adjourned until tomorrow, and will resume at 11 am on Monday, local time. Senate Majority Leader John Thune said it “remains to be seen” when the Senate will be able to vote on final passage on a measure to reopen the government, but that he hopes it can be sent to the House for a vote right away and then passed completely by early this week.
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US boycotts G20 summit in South Africa
United States President Donald Trump announced that the country will be boycotting the Group of 20 summit this year in South Africa, citing the country’s treatment of white farmers. Trump had already announced that he would not attend, and Vice President JD Vance would go in his place. Since then, a person familiar with Vance’s plans said he also would not be attending. In a post to Truth Social, Trump said it was a “disgrace” that the G20 would be hosted in South Africa, citing the “abuse” of Afrikaers. “Afrikaners (People who are descended from Dutch settlers, and also French and German immigrants) are being killed and slaughtered, and their land and farms are being illegally confiscated,” he said. “No U.S. Government Official will attend as long as these Human Rights abuses continue.” The Trump administration has accused the South African government of allowing minority white Afrikaner farmers to be persecuted and attacked. None of South Africa’s parties claims there is genocide in the country, and its foreign ministry described the decision by the White House as “regrettable”. A spokesperson for the South African foreign ministry, Chrispin Phiri, told BBC News that there was “absolutely no evidence of whit
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USDA tells states to stop SNAP stopgap funding efforts
The United States Department of Agriculture has directed states to stop the various steps taken to ensure residents still receive full food aid benefits. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits (SNAP) have been halted since the first of the month, for the first time in history, after the USDA claimed that “bottom line, the well has run dry”. In the days following the confirmation that SNAP would not be issued at all for November, several states have launched efforts to make up the loss for their residents, either funding the aid on a state level or by bolstering food banks to allow additional support. The day before, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Trump administration was allowed to continue withholding US$4 billion, which had been ordered by a federal judge to be used in funding SNAP fully. Late last week, Rhode Island's Judge John McConnell ordered the administration to use contingency funds to reinstate the program, in full, which the USDA said it would comply with, but to expect heavy delays. However, the Supreme Court order allows those funds to remain withheld, despite more than 42 million Americans being dependent on SNAP. Following this ruling, the Department issued guidance over the wee
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Nancy Pelosi retiring from Congress after 38 years
Nancy Pelosi, the only female speaker of the United States House of Representatives, is set to retire from Congress. Pelosi, age 85, announced this week in a social media video that she would not be seeking re-election after a 38-year Congressional career. Pelosi was first elected in 1987 and went on to make history as the House’s first-ever female speaker in 2007. She is still the only woman to have been in the position, which she held from 2007 to 2011 and again from 2019 to 2023. “With a grateful heart, I look forward to my final year of service as your proud representative," Pelosi said "As we go forward, my message to the city I love is this: San Francisco, know your power. We have made history. We have made progress. We have always led the way, and now we must continue to do so by remaining full participants in our Democracy and fighting for the American ideals we hold dear.”