As the US government shutdown grinds into its third week, a federal court has approved a temporary injunction blocking the Trump administration from sacking thousands of federal employees.
The judge ruled the president may have exceeded his authority to try to take advantage of the shutdown.
The decision came after Russ Vought, the director of the office of management and budget (OMB) at the White House, said that more cuts were coming, claiming the firings could be “north of 10,000” workers.
The lawsuit alleged that the OMB, through Vought, violated the law by making firing threats and instructing federal employees to carry out work related to the firings during the shutdown.
Here are the key US politics stories from Wednesday:
Judge temporarily blocks Trump from firing federal workers
A federal court has granted a temporary injunction blocking the Trump administration’s firings of federal employees during the government shutdown. The ruling by Judge Susan Illston of the US district court’s northern district of California came in response to a lawsuit filed by labor unions representing federal workers.
US supreme court looks inclined to weaken pillar of Voting Rights Act
The conservative majority on the US supreme court appeared poised to weaken a key pillar of the Voting Rights Act after a lengthy oral argument, paving the way for a significant upheaval in American civil rights law.
Chinese company gives Eric Trump crypto firm preferential access
A private Chinese company is giving preferential access to its technology and providing unusually beneficial payment terms on hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of specialized equipment to a firm partially owned by Donald Trump’s son Eric Trump, according to industry sources and Securities and Exchange Commission records.
Trump confirms he authorized covert CIA operations in Venezuela
Donald Trump confirmed reports on Wednesday that he authorized the CIA to conduct covert operations in Venezuela, marking a sharp escalation in US efforts to pressure President Nicolás Maduro’s regime.
The US president said he authorized the action for two main reasons, claiming that first, Venezuela had been releasing large numbers of prisoners into the US, and second, a large amount of drugs was entering the US from Venezuela, much of it by sea.
Man wrongfully imprisoned detained by Ice
A Pennsylvania man who was recently exonerated after spending more than four decades behind bars has now been taken into custody by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) and faces possible deportation to India.
Earlier this month, Centre county’s district attorney dismissed murder charges against 64-year-old Subramanyam “Subu” Vedam. However, shortly after his exoneration, Vedam was detained by Ice based on a 1988 deportation order tied to his now-vacated convictions.
Young Republicans face backlash after racist chats leaked
Some leaders of Young Republican groups throughout the country are facing a major backlash after Politico revealed 2,900 pages of leaked chats of some of their racist and highly offensive messages.
The Young Republican National Federation called on those involved in the chat to “immediately resign from all positions” within the organization.
Outcry after US strips visas from six foreigners over Kirk remarks
Civil liberties advocates are warning that the Trump administration’s decision to strip visas from at least six foreign nationals over social media posts about Charlie Kirk’s killing represents yet another example of dangerous government crackdowns on protected speech.
Hegseth’s plane forced to land due to crack in windshield
A plane carrying Pete Hegseth, the US defense secretary, on Wednesday made an unscheduled landing in the United Kingdom due to a crack in the aircraft’s windshield, the Pentagon said, adding that Hegseth was safe.
What else happened today:
For the first time in two decades, the US has dropped out of the world’s top 10 most powerful passports, marking a significant dethroning for the global superpower.
The mayor of Boston implied the city was ready for a face-off with Donald Trump over his claim he could order Fifa to remove World Cup games from its suburb.
Brown University became the second higher education institution to turn down an invitation from Trump to sign on to his administration’s 10-page college compact that would overhaul university policies in return for preferential access to federal funding.
Catching up? Here’s what happened on 14 October 2025.
