Closing summary
We’re wrapping up our live coverage of US politics for today, another day of extraordinary news on multiple fronts:
Even as a Trump-brokered ceasefire to end the war in Gaza moved forward, and both Israelis and Palestinians were celebrating, Trump’s Justice Department moved forward with a criminal prosecution of one of his longtime political foes, New York attorney general Letitia James, who previously sued Trump and his business for civil fraud and won, initially securing a roughly $500m penalty.
A federal grand jury in Virginia has now returned an indictment charging James with one count of bank fraud and one count of making a false statement to a lending institution, after an investigation that centered on paperwork for properties she owns in Virginia and New York.
Lindsey Halligan, Trump’s newly appointed US attorney for the eastern district of Virginia, personally presented the case to the grand jury on Thursday, a very unusual move for a US attorney.
News outlets noted that the Trump administration last month pushed out Erik Siebert, the veteran prosecutor who had overseen both investigations for months and had resisted pressure to file charges, and replaced him with Halligan, a White House aide who has worked as lawyer for Trump but has never previously served as a federal prosecutor.
Siebert had resigned on 19 September, hours after Trump told reporters: “I want him out.” Siebert believed the evidence against Comey and James was weak, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters at the time.
James, who will continue in her elected role, vowed to fight the charges, calling the case a“desperate weaponization of our justice system.” Prominent Democratic officials, including New York’s governor, issued messages of support, while civil rights groups attacked what they also called a weaponization of the justice system.
Meanwhile, a federal judge in Illinois issued a temporary restraining order blocking the deployment of National Guard troops to Chicago, saying in court that there was no evidence of a rebellion brewing in Illinois and that the Department of Homeland Security’s “narrative of events is simply unreliable.”
In a similar case unfolding in federal court in San Francisco, challenging Trump’s deployment of troops to Portland, Oregon, appellate judges heard arguments and seemed more likely to rule in Trump’s favor, allowing the deployment of troops.
Meanwhile, the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize is slated to be announced tomorrow. Donald Trump wants to win the prize this year, but probably won’t.
It’s been a day full of legal battles over the Trump administration’s desire to send National Guard troops into the liberal cities of Chicago, Illinois and Portland, Oregon.
While a federal judge in Chicago issued an order blocking the deployment for two weeks, a three-judge panel at a federal appeals court in San Francisco on Thursday appeared likely to set aside the ruling blocking Trump’s Portland deployment, which would clear the way for hundreds of soldiers to enter that city.
At the appellate court in San Francisco, Stacy Chaffin, an Oregon assistant attorney general, echoed the language of the lower court judge who blocked Trump’s deployment, saying the president’s descriptions of Portland as riven by violence were “untethered from reality.”
But he judges questioned whether they should only consider the current circumstances or take into account more active protests earlier this year that temporarily shut down ICE’s Portland headquarters. US circuit judge Ryan Nelson, a Trump appointee, said courts should not engage in a “day-by-day” review of whether troops were needed at any given time.
On the ground in Portland tonight, outside the Ice administration building, not much is going on at the moment, the Washington Post reports, with one of their reporters noting on social media just a few minutes ago that “The crowd is small. Jack the chicken protester is there.”
The winner of the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize will be announced on Friday, in a year overshadowed by a months-long campaign by Donald Trump to win what is arguably the world’s most prestigious award, Reuters reports.
Trump has been outspoken about his desire for a prize won by four of his predecessors - Barack Obama in 2009, Jimmy Carter in 2002, Woodrow Wilson in 1919 and Theodore Roosevelt in 1906. All but Carter won the award while in office, with Obama named laureate less than eight months after taking office - the same position Trump is in now.
To be sure, Trump announced the conclusion of a ceasefire and hostage deal on Wednesday, under the first phase of his initiative to end the war in Gaza.
But according to Norwegian daily VG the committee took its decision on Monday - before the announcement of the deal - and even if its five members had known about it before making their choice for this year’s award, it is unlikely they would have rushed into a decision they usually spend months debating.
Experienced Nobel-watchers have argued that a Trump win was extremely unlikely, citing what they see as his efforts to dismantle the post-World War Two international world order the Nobel committee cherishes.
After a federal judge’s order temporarily blocking Trump’s deployment of National Guard troops to Chicago, the Associated Press reported, it’s not exactly clear what the troops will do now.
The lawsuit was filed Monday by Chicago and Illinois as Guard members from Texas and Illinois were on their way to a US Army Reserve Center in Elwood, southwest of Chicago. All 500 are under the U.S. Northern Command and had been activated for 60 days.
Some National Guard troops are already in Illinois, the Associated Press reported, including a small number outside a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building in Broadview.
Some slept in vans Wednesday night outside the Broadview building, near Chicago, and emerged Thursday morning on patrol behind portable fences. For weeks, the ICE site has been the site of occasional clashes between protesters and federal agents.
In granting a temporary restraining order through October 23, US district judge April Perry said the behavior of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers has prompted the protests, and deploying Guard soldiers to Broadview would “only add fuel to the fire that defendants themselves have started,” Reuters reported.
Trump administration vows to appeal temporary restraining order in Illinois
After a federal judge in Chicago temporarily blocked President Donald Trump’s deployment of hundreds of National Guard soldiers in Illinois, the administration has vowed to appeal the order, Reuters reports.
“President Trump will not turn a blind eye to the lawlessness plaguing American cities and we expect to be vindicated by a higher court,” said a White House spokesperson, Abigail Jackson.
US District Judge April Perry said that permitting Guard troops in the state would only “add fuel to the fire,” after hearing more than two hours of arguments from lawyers for the U.S. government and the state of Illinois, which sued the Trump administration over the deployment. Her order will remain in effect until at least October 23.
In a social media post, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker said “Donald Trump is not a king — and his administration is not above the law. Today, the court confirmed what we all know: there is no credible evidence of a rebellion in the state of Illinois. And no place for the National Guard in the streets of American cities like Chicago.”
On Thursday evening, around the time of Perry’s ruling, about half a dozen Guard soldiers were milling around inside the gate at the ICE center in Broadview. A group of about 10 protesters were outside.
Updated
More context on the Leticia James indictment, which followed quickly on the heels of the federal justice department indicment of another person Trump has long seen as an enemy: former FBI direct Jim Comey.
Both the Comey and James cases followed a strikingly unconventional path toward indictment, the Associated Press notes. The Trump administration last month pushed out Erik Siebert, the veteran prosecutor who had overseen both investigations for months and had resisted pressure to file charges, and replaced him with Lindsey Halligan, a White House aide who has worked as lawyer for Trump but has never previously served as a federal prosecutor.
Meanwhile Reuters notes that Siebert resigned on September 19, hours after Trump told reporters: “I want him out.” Siebert believed the evidence against Comey and James was weak, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters at the time.
James called the decision to fire Siebert and replace him with a prosecutor who is “blindly loyal” to the president as “antithetical to the bedrock principles of our country,” and she said she stood by her investigation of Trump and his company as having been “based on the facts and evidence — not politics,” the Associated Press reports.
The City, an independent news outlet in New York, did a long podcast interview with New York attorney general Letitia James last week, if you’re interested in hearing directly from the embattled prosecutor who took on Donald Trump and won, and is now criminally charged herself.
Zohran Mamdani, the leading candidate in the New York City mayoral race, has called out rival candidate and former New York state governor Andrew Cuomo on social media for commenting on Letitia James’ indictment today without actually mentioning her name.
Cuomo resigned as governor in 2021 after an investigation led by James, the state’s attorney general, concluded that he had he sexually harassed 11 women, created a “climate of fear” in a “toxic” workplace and violated federal and state civil laws.
What’s her name? https://t.co/IF3tRncX3W
— Zohran Kwame Mamdani (@ZohranKMamdani) October 9, 2025
Cuomo repeatedly said that James’ investigation of him was politically motivated.
What’s behind today’s grand jury indictment of New York attorney Letitia James on a bank fraud charge, which is being widely condemned as a politically motivated attack? Reuters has more details:
The indictment accuses James of falsely telling a bank that she would occupy a Norfolk, Virginia, home she bought in 2020 for around $137,000 as a secondary residence. It alleges she used it as an investment property.
The indictment said the alleged misrepresentation allowed James to receive a favorable interest rate, saving her around $19,000 over the life of the loan.
“The charges as alleged in this case represent intentional, criminal acts and tremendous breaches of the public’s trust,” Lindsey Halligan, the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, said in a statement.
Both charges require prosecutors to prove that James had criminal intent, meaning she knowingly provided false information to secure a financial benefit. That means an incorrect fact on documents she submitted to the bank on its own may not be enough to secure a conviction, and the defense may argue that any misrepresentations were mistakes.
As my colleague Sam Levine reports today, the case may hinge on small paperwork details, including one box checked on one document:
A grand jury empaneled earlier this year had been investigating allegations that James may have committed fraud when she helped her niece buy a home in Virginia.
On a document that was part of that transaction, there was a box checked indicating James intended to use it as her primary residence, which would make better mortgage rates available. But in other documents and emails with her mortgage broker, James clearly indicated she did not intend to use the home as her primary residence.
A career prosecutor in the eastern district of Virginia, Elizabeth Yusi, had determined there wasn’t probable cause to file mortgage fraud charges against James and had been preparing to present her thinking to Halligan.
An update from Illinois: US district judge April Perry blocked the deployment of National Guard troops in the Chicago area for two weeks, finding no substantial evidence that a “danger of rebellion” is brewing in Illinois, the Associated Press reports.
It’s a victory for Democratic officials who lead the state and city and have traded insults with President Donald Trump about his drive to put troops on the ground in major urban areas.
The lawsuit was filed Monday by Chicago and Illinois to stop the deployments of Illinois and Texas Guard members. Some troops were already at an immigration building in the Chicago suburb of Broadview when Perry heard arguments on Thursday.
The building has been the site of occasional clashes between protesters and agents.
Perry said the actions of the Department of Homeland Security are largely rooted in President Donald Trump’s “animus toward Illinois elected officials.” She expressed skepticism of the federal government’s characterization of protests in Broadview.
“DHS’s narrative of events is simply unreliable,” she said.
Heavy turnout at the downtown courthouse caused officials to open an overflow room with a video feed of the hearing. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson sat in a corner of the courtroom.
As my colleague Sam Levine notes today, Trump has made little secret of his desire to use the justice department to punish his rivals. “What about Comey, Adam ‘Shifty’ Schiff, Leticia??? They’re all guilty as hell, but nothing is going to be done,” he said in a September post on Truth Social that was addressed to Pam Bondi, the US attorney general. “We can’t delay any longer, it’s killing our reputation and credibility.”
“This is what tyranny looks like,” Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, who represents New York, said in a statement on Letitia James’ indictment. “President Trump is using the Justice Department as his personal attack dog.”
The United States is sending about 200 troops to Israel to support and help monitor the ceasefire deal in Gaza as part of a team that includes partner nations, non-governmental organizations and private-sector entities, US officials said Thursday, the Associated Press reports:
“Openly seeeking revenge on his political opponents…Trump is ripping a page right out of the authoritarian handbook.”
That’s Elizabeth Warren, Democratic senator from Massachusetts, responding to today’s indictment of Letitia James, the New York attorney general who filed a civil fraud case against Trump in New York, and won it. Trump has long accused James of leading a “witch hunt” against him. Her full statement:
The President of the United States is openly seeking revenge on his political opponents. First Jim Comey. Now Tish James. Anyone who seeks to hold Donald Trump accountable could be next. Trump is ripping a page right out of the authoritarian handbook.
“Simply un-American.” That’s how the Democratic Attorneys General Association characterized today’s indictment of New York attorney general Letitia James, a member of the group, in a statement:
Trump’s weaponization of the Department of Justice to attack a democratically elected Attorney General on baseless charges is appalling. His administration has been threatening and harassing New York AG Tish James for months, and this latest action takes his unjust crusade against her to a horrifying new level. AG James has always fought for justice and done right by the people of New York; defending the rule of law and the Constitution should not make her a target for political retaliation. To abuse the power of government to pursue personal vendettas and continuously harass AG James for the sake of political retribution is beyond reprehensible.
Democratic congressional leader Hakeem Jeffries, who represents a New York district, has also made a statement denouncing the Trump administration’s “malicious prosecution” of New York attorney general Letitia James:
The baseless indictment of New York Attorney General Letitia James is part of Donald Trump’s corrupt weaponization of the criminal justice system against anyone who has sought to hold him accountable.
Attorney General James has courageously been at the forefront of successfully challenging the Trump administration’s lawless and deeply unpopular overreach. At all times, she has followed the facts, applied the law and been guided by the Constitution.
The malicious prosecution of Attorney General James has no legitimate basis in law or fact, was brought by a corrupt political hack and will not survive scrutiny in a Court of Law.
Donald Trump continues to disgrace the presidency and the Department of Justice. Those sycophants who aid and abet the President’s vengeful schemes will not be able to hide from the serious legal consequences of their behavior. They will be held accountable.
A US federal judge in Chicago temporarily blocked the Trump administration’s deployment of federalized National Guard troops in the state on Thursday in response to a lawsuit filed by the Illinois attorney general, Reuters reports.
We’re still waiting on the full details of that order.
From the courtroom in Chicago, a local federal courts reporter for the Chicago Sun-Times, Jon Seidel, highlighted some of Judge April Perry’s comments about the order.
Perry said that the Department of Homeland Security’s characterization of events in Chicago lacked credibility, and that “I have seen no credible evidence that there is danger of rebellion in the state of Illinois.”
Perry also noted that deploying National Guard troops from other states to Chicago to ostensibly make the city safer had some obvious problems, and suggested that local law enforcement had more context for dealing with community members in times of crisis that out of state troops would have.
“Chicago’s history of strained policing community relations is extremely well documented, but also fairly nuanced,” Perry said, per Seidel’s reporting. “It’s something I think state and local authorities understand extremely well, and it can be hard for federal authorities, and certainly those from Texas, to appreciate.”
Chicago’s history of using violent policing tactics on Black residents is extensive, and includes landmark 2015 legislation creating reparations for decades of torture by former Chicago police commander Jon Burge.
Federal judge says she will block the deployment of National Guard in Illinois, for now
In a courtroom in Chicago, federal judge April Perry just said she is issuing an order that the Trump administration is “temporarily enjoined from ordering the federalization and deployment of the National Guard of the United States within Illinois,” the Chicago Sun-Times’ Jon Seidel reports, with Reuters confirming.
Updated
A federal judge’s ruling in Illinois, where the state is seeking a temporary restraining order to block the Trump administration from sending in the National Guard, is hinging on a “credibility determination,” with the judge stating that the Department of Homeland Security’s “perception of events” have been “simply unreliable,” Jon Seidel of the Chicago Sun-Times reports from the courtroom.
“I simply cannot credit [the Trump administration’s] declarations to the extent they contradict state and local law enforcement. … DHS’ perception of events are simply unreliable,” US district judge April Perry said, per Seidel’s reporting.
Seidel also reports that the judge cited multiple other legal decisions in the past 48 hours, which, she said, “all cast significant doubt on DHS’ credibility and assessment of what is happening on the streets of Chicago.”
We’re still waiting on the details, but local journalists in Illinois are reporting that US district Judge April Perry is granting “in part” Illinois’ request for a temporary restraining order to halt the Trump administration’s deployment of National Guard troops into the state.
Jon Seidel, the federal courts reporter for the Chicago Sun-Times, has some key points from the judge’s comments, though he also notes on social media that “We still don’t know the details of her order. She said she’s granting the state’s request ‘in part,’ which indicates some part of it is also being denied. Stay tuned.”
One of the judge’s key lines so far, Seidel and othere report: “I have seen no credible evidence that there is danger of rebellion in the state of Illinois.”
Seidel reported about ten minutes ago that the judge “just handed a draft of her order to both sides and left the bench. She’s letting them look at it until she returns.”
Updated
New York governor Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, has also made a statement in support of New York attorney general Letitia James, accusing Trump of weaponizing his Justice Department who “punish those who hold the powerful accountable.”
New Yorkers know @NewYorkStateAG James for her integrity, her independence, and her relentless fight for justice.
— Governor Kathy Hochul (@GovKathyHochul) October 9, 2025
What we're seeing today is nothing less than the weaponization of the Justice Department to punish those who hold the powerful accountable.
ACLU calls indictment against Letitia James 'brazen abuse of power' by Trump
The American Civil Liberties Union is calling the Trump Justice Department’s indictment of New York attorney general Letitia James “the latest in a long list of brazen abuses of power by President Trump” and a “stunning violation.”
“He has continued to weaponize our nation’s judicial system to settle personal vendettas, attack his political opponents, and silence his critics,” the ACLU and the New York Civil Liberties Union said in a statement.
“President Trump’s open interference in the Department of Justice’s investigation – demanding charges, forcing out the prosecutor, and installing a loyalist – is a stunning violation of our country’s long tradition of an independent judicial system. The indictment of Letitia James makes it clearer than ever that President Trump has prioritized retaliation over the rule of law.
“Whether it’s targeting Jimmy Kimmel, James Comey, Letitia James, or the millions of everyday people exercising their rights to free speech, this administration’s efforts to prosecute, bully, and intimidate will only strengthen the People’s resolve to exercise our freedoms and defend our democracy.”
Updated
NY AG Letitia James on her indictment: a 'desperate weaponization of our justice system'
New York state attorney general Letitia James sent out this statement on the news that she has been indicted by a federal grand jury for bank fraud after one of Trump’s US attorneys, Lindsey Halligan, personally presented the case to the grand jury.
She also posted a video of her statement on X:
This is nothing more than a continuation of the president’s desperate weaponization of our justice system.
— NY AG James (@NewYorkStateAG) October 9, 2025
I am not fearful — I am fearless.
We will fight these baseless charges aggressively, and my office will continue to fiercely protect New Yorkers and their rights. pic.twitter.com/X9U0EsHuGM
“This is nothing more than a continuation of the president’s desperate weaponization of our justice system. He is forcing federal law enforcement agencies to do his bidding, all because I did my job as the New York State Attorney General.
“These charges are baseless, and the president’s own public statements make clear that his only goal is political retribution at any cost. The president’s actions are a grave violation of our Constitutional order and have drawn sharp criticism from members of both parties.
“His decision to fire a United States Attorney who refused to bring charges against me – and replace them with someone who is blindly loyal not to the law, but to the president – is antithetical to the bedrock principles of our country. This is the time for leaders on both sides of the aisle to speak out against this blatant perversion of our system of justice.
“I stand strongly behind my office’s litigation against the Trump Organization. We conducted a two-year investigation based on the facts and evidence – not politics. Judges have upheld the trial court’s finding that Donald Trump, his company, and his two sons are liable for fraud.
“I am a proud woman of faith, and I know that faith and fear cannot share the same space. And so today I am not fearful, I am fearless, and as my faith teaches me, no weapon formed against me shall prosper. We will fight these baseless charges aggressively, and my office will continue to fiercely protect New Yorkers and their rights. And I will continue to do my job.”
Updated
A look back at the history between Donald Trump and Letitia James
Letitia James fixated on Donald Trump as she campaigned for New York attorney general, branding the then-president a “con man” and ″carnival barker” and pledging to shine a “bright light into every dark corner of his real estate dealings,” the Associated Press reported in 2023.
That year, James appeared to be on the verged of disrupting Trump’s real estate empire after a judge ruled Tuesday that he defrauded banks, insurers and others by exaggerating the value of assets on paperwork used for deals and securing loans.
Her civil fraud lawsuit against Trump was not her only legal battle against a powerful and prominent opponent:
In 2021, James oversaw an investigation of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who had been accused by multiple women of sexual harassment. The inquiry led to a remarkable downfall for the once-rising star in the Democratic party. Lawyers hired by James concluded that 11 women were telling the truth when they said Cuomo touched them inappropriately, commented on their appearance or made suggestive comments about their sex lives. Cuomo alleged that James used the investigation to further her own political aspirations.
James also led a lawsuit against the National Rifle Association in a case that accuses its leaders of financial mismanagement, which led to the resignation of powerful NRA leader Wayne LaPierre
Updated
Video made public in 2023 showed Donald Trump personally answering questions from New York attorney general Letitia James in the civil fraud case she brought against him, and pleading the fifth more than 400 times.
Now, James, one of the attorneys who succeeded in holding Trump legally accountable for his behavior, has been indicted for bank fraud by a federal grand jury, in what appears to be president’s latest effort to weaponize the federal Department of Justice to punish his political rivals.
Updated
Here’s more background on Letitia James, the New York state attorney general who went after Trump, and has now been indicted by Trump administration-appointed federal prosecutors.
James filed a civil fraud lawsuit against Trump in 2022, which alleged that he inflated his net worth by billions of dollars on his financial statements and habitually misled banks and others about the value of prized assets, including golf courses, hotels, the Trump Tower skyscraper in Manhattan and his Mar-a-Lago estate in south Florida.
In 2024, she won what she called a “tremendous victory” in the case, saying “Donald Trump is finally facing accountability for his lying, cheating and staggering fraud. Because no matter how big, rich or powerful you think you are, no one is above the law.”
Judge Arthur Engoron ruled last year that James had proved Trump engaged in a years-long conspiracy with executives at his company to deceive banks and insurers.
Engoron ordered Trump to pay $355m – payback of what the judge deemed “ill-gotten gains” from his puffed-up financial statements. That amount soared to more than $515m, including interest, by the time an appellate court ruled this year that the judgment was “excessive.”
Updated
Donald Trump posted on Truth Social on Wednesday night that Israel and Hamas had agreed the first phase of a new ceasefire deal in Gaza. We’ve been here before, but is it different this time? Has Trump proved the doubters wrong?
Jonathan Freedland speaks to Julian Borger about the prospect for peace in the Middle East and the US president’s role in getting to this point
Trump confirms Middle East trip for Sunday, says that no one will be forced to leave Gaza
The president also confirmed that he’ll head to the Middle East “sometime Sunday”.
“Everybody I see is celebrating in Israel, but they’re celebrating in many other countries too. A lot of the Muslim and Arab countries, they’re celebrating,” he added.
In response to a reporter’s question, Donald Trump also said that no one would be forced to leave Gaza as it’s being rebuilt. “It’s just the opposite. This is a great plan. This is a great peace plan,” he said. “We’re not looking to do that at all.”
Trump chides Spain for 'lagging' on defense spending, suggests expulsion from Nato
The president has called out Spain for not paying five per cent on defense spending that Donald Trump has urged.
Spain is currently the only Nato member who has refused to pay more of its GDP on defense.
"We had one laggard. It was Spain,” Trump said. “You have to call them and find why are they a laggard … they have no excuse not to do this. But that’s all right, maybe you should throw them Nato.”
Trump said that he thought that brokering an end to the war in Ukraine would have been “one of the easier ones”, but is confident that a ceasefire will be on the horizon “hopefully soon”.
“I think Russia is actually right now, both economically and militarily, not in a very strong place,” Stubb added, praising Donald Trump for pushing European allies to boycott sales of Russian oil and gas.
Donald Trump and Finland’s president, Alexander Stubb, are meeting now in the Oval Office. Stubb congratulated Trump on the first phase of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire.
If someone would have said a few weeks back that you and your team are able to push us to a position where there will be a cease fire, an exchange of prisoners, hostages, and then a pullback, I would not have believed it, but it’s this is what diplomacy is at its best.
Here's a recap of the day so far
The Senate has rejected, for the seventh time, a House-passed bill to keep the government funded until 21 November – leaving no end in sight for shutdown as it enters its ninth day. The continuing resolution failed to pass the 60-vote threshold to advance. The upper chamber also failed to pass a Democratic alternative, replete with several health care provisions. Congressional lawmakers from both sides of the aisle continue to trade barbs, blaming the other party for the lapse in government funding.
At his eight cabinet meeting, Donald Trump took a victory lap following the agreement of the first phase of a ceasefire deal by Israel and Hamas. The meeting lasted just over an hour, and the president said that the Gaza hostages should be released on Monday or Tuesday and that he hopes to attend a signing ceremony in Egypt. Trump also said that he had agreed to speak at the Knesset on his upcoming trip to the Middle East.
Two federal courts heard arguments over the Trump administration’s deployment of national guard troops to Democratic-run cities. A three-panel judge on the ninth circuit court of appeals wrapped a hearing to decide whether to allow the president’s deployment of national guard troops to Portland, Oregon. Last week a lower court judge blocked the administration from federalizing troops. Meanwhile, in Chicago, April Perry, a district court judge, held a hearing in a very similar case, after protests erupted outside immigration facilities throughout the city and Trump deployed hundreds of national guard officers from Illinois and Texas to Chicago. After closing arguments, Perry asked lawyers to be back at the court in a few hours.
Meanwhile, Trump’s homeland security secretary said that the department is buying buildings in Chicago and Portland where agents can operate. “We’re going to not back off,” Kristi Noem said at today’s cabinet meeting. “In fact, we’re doubling down, and we’re going to be in more parts of Chicago in response to the people there.”
The president of Finland, Alexander Stubb, has arrived at the White House. Donald Trump will hold a bilateral meeting with the Finnish leader shortly.
Judge Perry has called a recess and has asked the lawyers representing Illinois and the administration to be back in the courtroom by 5:30pm EST. We’ll bring you more as it happens.
Federal judge in Chicago hears arguments on deployment of national guard
Meanwhile, in the midwest, a federal judge is hearing arguments in a very similar case in Chicago.
Judge April Perry, a Biden appointee, will deliberate on whether to block the president’s deployment of troops to the windy city as protests outside Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) facilities continue.
Earlier this week, she declined to issue a temporary restraining order after the state of Illinois filed a lawsuit against the administration, instead she gave the federal government two days to respond and scheduled today’s hearing.
We’re not sure when Perry will issue her ruling, but as we’ve been reporting, hundreds of national guard troop from Illinois and Texas arrived in Chicago this week and have stayed put.
House-passed funding bill fails to pass the Senate for seventh time
The Senate has rejected, for the seventh time, a House-passed bill to keep the government funded until 21 November – leaving no end in sight for shutdown as it enters its ninth day.
The upper chamber voted 54-55 on the funding extension, failing to meet the 60-vote threshold, with the same three Democratic and Independent senators voting “yes” and breaking ranks with the party.
Republican senator Rand Paul, of Kentucky, continued to vote “no”, while senator Ted Cruz, of Texas, did not vote.
Per my last post, it’s worth remembering that this case is now at the appellate court after the administration appealed the decision by a Trump-appointed lower court judge, Karin Immergut. Last week, Immergut blocked the president from federalizing and deploying the national guard, saying the president’s reasoning was “simply untethered from the facts”.
Appeals court deliberates Trump's deployment of national guard troops to Portland, Oregon
A short while ago, a three-judge panel on the ninth circuit court of appeals wrapped a hearing to decide whether to allow Donald Trump’s deployment of national guard troops to Portland, Oregon.
A reminder that late Wednesday, the appeals court ruled that the troops could stay federalized, but stopped short of saying Trump had the power to deploy them.
Today, the judges, two of whom were nominated by Trump, heard arguments from Oregon officials who say that the White House has completely mischaracterized and exaggerated the protests outside an immigration in Portland as a “rebellion”, in an attempt to legally justify its use of the military. Meanwhile, lawyers for the administration have described the scenes as lawless and uncontrolled.
Today’s cabinet meeting was dramatically shorter than the president’s last one, which he held in August. That went on for more than three hours, whereas today’s came in just over an hour.
Administration will be able to help farmers once shutdown is over, says agriculture secretary
During the president’s cabinet meeting, Brooke Rollins, Trump’s agriculture secretary, said that “we’ve got to get the government reopened” so that the administration can begin to help America’s farmers. She insisted, however, that they aren’t just struggling because of the steep retaliatory tariffs imposed by China, amid the ongoing trade war that kicked off when Trump returned to the White House this year.
Instead, Rollins blamed the previous administration. “We inherited a slew of issues,” the agriculture secretary said, listing the increase in cost of labor and goods that farmers need under Joe Biden. “We have to change this hamster wheel of government. We’ve got to ensure that the farmers have the market to sell.”
Updated
Trump says that Netenyahu is 'more popular than five days ago'
The president has said that Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netenyahu, is “much more popular today” than he was five days ago, when asked about his ability to stay in power following the first phase of the peace deal between Israel and Hamas.
Trump had “some extraordinary phone calls and meetings”, Rubio adds, that made the deal possible.
A turning point was Trump’s meeting with Arab and Muslim countries on the sidelines of the UN summit a few weeks ago, Rubio adds, to get those countries behind his plan.
Updated
Secretary of state Marco Rubio credits Trump’s “forging of relationships” on previous trips to the Middle East with laying the foundation for the Israel-Hamas deal announced yesterday.
Updated
Noem says homeland security department buying buildings in Chicago and Portland to operate from
Homeland security secretary Kristi Noem says the department is “doubling down” by buying buildings in Chicago and Portland for immigration enforcement to operate out of.
“We’re purchasing more buildings in Chicago to operate out of. We’re going to not back off,” she says. “In fact, we’re doubling down, and we’re going to be in more parts of Chicago in response to the people there.”
“I was there a few days ago and looked at some facilities that we can deploy more law enforcement out of,” she says.
Noem adds that they’re also purchasing facilities in Portland.
Updated
Trump again says he’ll be leaving “fairly soon” for the Middle East.
Trump says they’re going to Chicago and other cities “to restore law and order”.
Trump says administration is 'only' going to make permanent cuts to 'Democrat programs'
Trumps says that “we will be making cuts that are permanent and we’re only going to cut Democrat programs, I hate to tell you”.
“We’re only cutting Democrat programs,” he repeats. “We’ll be cutting some very popular Democrat programs that aren’t popular with Republicans, frankly, that’s the way it works.”
Senate again fails to advance Democratic stopgap funding bill
A quick break from the cabinet meeting to say that the Senate has once again rejected the Democratic stopgap funding bill on day nine of the government shutdown.
The upper chamber will now vote again on the GOP’s stopgap funding bill that would fund the government until late November.
A reminder that it needs 60 votes to advance, meaning Democrats would have to sign on.
Updated
He says the attack on Iran was important to reaching a Gaza deal for its role in Tehran not having a nuclear weapon.
He adds that Iran wants to work on peace and the US will work with them.
Trump says that October 7th was “terrible” but also Hamas (read: Gaza) lost 70,000 people.
“That’s big retribution,” he says. “But at some point that whole thing has to stop. And we’re going to see to it.”
He adds that Gaza will slowly be “redone” and says many countries will be stepping up to get it done.
Trump says Gaza hostages should be released on Monday or Tuesday
Trump says the hostages still held in Gaza “should be released on Monday or Tuesday”.
He adds that securing them is a complicated process.
He reiterates that he’s going to “try and make a trip over there” to Egypt and that there will be an official signing, though he doesn’t give further details.
He says once again hat he believes the agreement will lead to “lasting peace”.
Trump signs 'Columbus Day' proclamation
Donald Trump’s cabinet meeting has kicked off with the signing of a “Columbus Day” proclamation.
Monday marks the day that is now also observed as Indigenous People’s Day, a counter-event to acknowledge the genocide, land theft and brutal treatment of indigenous people that followed Christopher Columbus’s arrival in the so-called New World.
But Trump’s proclamation casts the holiday squarely in its more traditional – and much contested – sense as a marker of “the innovation and explorer’s zeal that [Columbus] represented”.
Trump adds:
In other words, we’re calling it Columbus Day.
Many in the room break out into applause and somebody off camera says: “Yes, no more Indigineous People’s Day.”
Trump announces former housing secretary will receive presidential medal of freedom
Donald Trump announced that Dr Ben Carson, the former neurosurgeon who served as the president’s secretary for housing and urban development (HUD) during his first administration, will receive a presidential medal of freedom.
“He [Carson] is a true American Patriot who cares deeply for the people of our Country, and never stops working to protect and strengthen Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness, for all,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Carson, who was recently sworn in as the national nutrition adviser at the Department of Agriculture (USDA), is now working closely with health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr, and agriculture secretary Brooke Rollins, in his new role.
Turning Point USA announces Super Bowl half-time show counter programming
Turning Point USA (TPUSA), the conservative nonprofit founded by the late right-wing activist Charlie Kirk, announced that it will air the “All American Halftime Show” – counter programming to the main event, where Bad Bunny will perform.
TPUSA hasn’t yet confirmed the details or performers, or where viewers will be able to watch their alternative to the Super Bowl half-time show. The organization has published a form asking supporters to list their preferences for music genres.
The options begin with “anything in English”, a pointed remark at Bad Bunny, who performs in Spanish, and has angered many Republicans after he was selected to be the performer for the widely watched half-time show.
This week, House speaker Mike Johnson told reporters that it was “a terrible decision” to choose Bad Bunny, despite admitting to not knowing who he is.
“In my view you would have someone like Lee Greenwood, or role models doing it,” Johnson said, referring to the country singer best known for his song ‘God Bless the USA’.
Soon, we’ll hear from Donald Trump at his eighth cabinet meeting since he returned to office. We’ll bring you the latest lines as they come through.
Per my last post, members of the military stand to miss their next paycheck on 15 October if a funding bill isn’t passed, or lawmakers don’t pass a stand alone bill to ensure service members are paid during the shutdown.
Johnson sidesteps question about stand alone bill to keep military paid, blaming Democrats
When asked about passing a stand alone bill to keep members of the military paid, Johnson was evasive today, suggesting it was off the table. He added that separate legislation wouldn’t be needed if Senate Democrats advance the House-passed funding bill.
“We sent a totally clean document over there, because we’re operating in good faith,” Johnson said. “We put that bill on the floor, and the Republicans voted to pay the troops. TSA, agent, border patrol, air traffic control, everybody else. The Democrats voted no.”
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On ninth day of government shutdown, Johnson says Democrats are performing 'political theater'
As the government shutdown enters its ninth day, Mike Johnson continued to blame Democratic lawmakers for the lapse in funding.
“It’s political theater to them. They’ve reduced Americans pain to a political problem,” Johnson said, while chiding Chuck Schumer, the Senate’s top Democrat, for a remark he made in an interview with Punchbowl News. “He says, quote, ‘every day of the shutdown gets better for us’. What the heck is he talking about?”
Johnson noted that he spoke to Donald Trump on Wednesday night, following the news of the first phase of the peace deal in Gaza: “He and I both lament, we all do, this terrible situation that we’re in while we’re working to do all these positive things for the people and even settle conflicts around the world.”
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Johnson says initial phase of Gaza deal 'will achieve incredible results'
House speaker Mike Johnson is speaking at a press conference at the US Capitol, and spent his opening remarks praising the Trump administration for brokering the first phase of the Israel-Hamas peace deal, which includes the release of all Israeli hostages, the release of Palestinian prisoners, and the withdrawal of Israel’s military from the territory.
“He’s going to bring peace and security back to Israel and truly lay the foundation for a lasting peace in the Middle East,” Johnson said. “This is a goal and an objective that’s been stated by presidents and politicians and policymakers and people around the globe for generations. President Trump has the strength and the vision and the resolve to do it.”
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For Donald Trump, a peace deal – or even a durable ceasefire between Israel and Hamas – could be the biggest diplomatic achievement of his presidency.
The details and sequencing of a deal to end Israel’s war in Gaza remain murky but the statement of purpose by both Israel and Hamas is meaningful. In agreeing to a deal with political backing from Arab states and other regional powers, this is the best chance for an end to the war since a ceasefire broke down in March, returning Gaza to a grinding war that has left nearly 68,000 people dead, most of them civilians.
Since March there have been rumblings of a deal but nothing that has come this close. The first phase of the peace plan, as Trump called it in a Truth Social post on Wednesday, is straightforward: the return of hostages held by Hamas in exchange for a limited withdrawal by the Israeli military. But finding all the hostages, and managing an Israeli withdrawal, could be complicated.
In keeping with the tone of Trump’s presidency, hopes are expressed in hyperbole, with the president saying: “ALL of the Hostages will be released very soon, and Israel will withdraw their Troops to an agreed upon line as the first steps toward a Strong, Durable, and Everlasting Peace. All Parties will be treated fairly!”
There is so much left to be discussed. The 20-point peace plan proposed by the administration attempts to thread the needle between creating the conditions for a ceasefire and negotiating a lasting end to the war; the hard questions of Hamas’s future and whether the militant group will disarm, along with Israel’s vision for the future of Gaza, remain to be hammered out.
Read more of Andrew’s analysis here.
On that note, in a short while we’ll hear from Republican speaker of the House, Mike Johnson. He’ll hold a press conference at the Capitol at 10am EST on the ongoing shutdown.
As shutdown enters ninth day, top House Democrat says that party is 'completely aligned'
In an interview with CNN today, Hakeem Jeffries, the House minority leader, said that “House and Senate Democrats have been completely aligned, and Senate Democrats continue to hold the line in a strong and principled way on behalf of the American people”.
The GOP-written stopgap funding bill failed, for the sixth time, to clear the upper chamber on Wednesday. Both parties continue to blame the other for the government shutdown.
Democrats have been resolute that health care provisions – including the extension of Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies – must be part of any short-term funding patch, while Republicans want to pass a “clean” bill that keeps the government funded, as is, until 21 November.
“Isn’t it reasonable for working-class Americans, for middle class Americans, for everyday Americans who are facing the possibility of dramatically increased premiums, co-pays and deductibles … isn’t it reasonable for them to have a similar level of certainty in their lives,” Jeffries said.
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The president has spent much of Thursday morning thanking his allies on Truth social for praising his diplomatic efforts in Gaza.
“I would like to thank Republican Congressman Brian Mast, of Florida, for his brilliant words and analysis on the return of the Hostages, and Peace in the Middle East, this morning on Fox & Friends. Thank you Brian!!!,” Trump wrote in a post.
He went on to congratulate Mike Huckabee, the US ambassador to Israel: “He worked so hard, and did so much, to bring about Peace in the Middle East. He has very quickly become a Great Man. Thank you Mike!”
The president will likely take an extended victory lap at today’s cabinet meeting, which we’ll be covering as it happens.
A reminder that my colleagues are bringing you the latest developments, as more details emerge from the first phase of the peace plan in Gaza.
The Guardian’s William Christou is reporting from Israel, and notes that mood is “festive” in the Tel Aviv’s Hostage Square since the news broke that Israel and Hamas signed a deal which would see the 20 remaining living hostages held in Gaza returned in 72 hours – with the remains of 28 repatriated as soon possible.
In return, nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners would be released from Israeli jails and Israeli troops would withdraw from 47% of the Gaza strip.
You can follow along here below.
We’ll hear from Donald Trump at 11am EST today, when he hosts a cabinet meeting at the White House. We can expect to hear more about the first phase of the peace plan, but also some more reaction to national guard troops deployed to Chicago.
The president’s last cabinet meeting went on for more than three hours … so we’re buckled in.
Later today, Trump will welcome Finland’s president, Alexander Stubb, to the White House. We’ll bring you the latest lines from that meeting if it opens up to the press.
In between both of those events in Washington, there will be two hearings in federal courts across the country, to determine if the president can deploy troops to Portland and Chicago.
Updated
A group of Republicans in Pennsylvania are relaunching their efforts to unseat Congressman Scott Perry, the fervent Trump ally who represents the state’s 10th congressional district, according to plans first provided to the Guardian.
The “Republicans Against Perry” (Rap) group began in late 2023, backing the congressman’s Democratic opponent, Janelle Stelson, who ended up losing by less than two points in the 2024 election. Now, Rap is restarting their grassroots campaign on Thursday, which includes a slew of electronic billboards throughout the district.
With Republicans’ razor-thin margin in the House, the seat will be one to watch closely in the midterm elections. Politics PA called Perry’s seat the most vulnerable of the 2026 congressional races they are watching.
While Rap is backed by the WelcomePac, which focuses its support for Democratic candidates, the group is not throwing its weight behind any candidate challenging Perry just yet. “It’s premature to make a sort of final determination,” said Craig Snyder, a Pennsylvania-based Republican organizer who is running the campaign. “Our reason for being is to defeat Scott Perry, and if that does not happen in the primary, then we are very, very likely to support the Democratic nominee.”
Stelson, a former local news anchor, has announced her bid to run for office again. While Karen Dalton, a former Republican staff attorney in the Pennsylvania state house, has launched a primary challenge against Perry.
Perry, the four-term incumbent, is a member, and former chairman, of the House’s ultra-conservative Freedom Caucus. Following Joe Biden’s presidential victory in 2020, he maintained that the election was stolen, and in the lead-up to the January 6 insurrection at the US Capitol, Perry introduced Donald Trump to fellow election denier Jeffrey Clark, who was then a justice department official. Perry pushed for Clark’s appointment as acting attorney general to continue an effort to undermine the 2020 election results.
Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said on Thursday that United States States secretary Marco Rubio called the Brazilian foreign minister Mauro Vieira on Wednesday following a call between Lula and President Donald Trump about tariffs.
In an interview with local radio station Piata FM, Lula said he was surprised about the outcome of the talk with Trump, in which he requested the removal of tariffs on Brazilian exports to the United States.
Hundreds of national guard troops remained in the Chicago area as city and Illinois officials awaited a judge’s decision to stop Donald Trump’s aggressive immigration enforcement operation in the nation’s third-largest city.
It was still unclear where specifically the Trump administration would send the troops who reported to an army training site south-west of Chicago, which was laden with extra fencing and tarps put up to block the public’s view of the facility late on Wednesday evening.
As they arrived this week, trucks marked Emergency Disaster Services pulled in and out, dropping off portable toilets and other supplies. Trailers were set up in rows.
“The federal government has not communicated with us in any way about their troop movements,” Illinois governor JB Pritzker told reporters. “I can’t believe I have to say ‘troop movements’ in an American city, but that is what we’re talking about here.”
Roughly 500 soldiers – 200 from the Texas national guard and 300 from the Illinois national guard – were mobilized to the city for an “initial period of 60 days”, according to statement issued from the US Northern Command, part of the defense department, which called the operation a “federal protection mission”.
The homeland security secretary, Kristi Noem, on Wednesday compared antifa to MS-13, Hamas, Hezbollah and the Islamic State, calling the loosely affiliated network of antifascist street activists “just as dangerous” as designated terrorist organizations during a White House roundtable discussion.
“They are just as sophisticated as MS-13, as TDA [Tren de Aragua], as Isis, as Hezbollah, as Hamas, as all of them, they are just as dangerous,” Noem said. “They have an agenda to destroy us, just like the other terrorists we’ve dealt with for many, many years.”
The roundtable featured rightwing social media journalists such as Andy Ngo, Nick Sortor, Katie Daviscourt and others who cover leftwing protests.
Some of the groups Noem cited – Hamas, Hezbollah and Isis – are formally designated terrorist organizations that control territory, operate military wings, maintain command structures and have carried out mass casualty attacks including bombings, kidnappings and assassinations.
Extremism experts have long described antifa, by contrast, as having no centralized leadership, formal membership or organizational structure, and it has generally been described by federal law enforcement as a decentralized movement of activists who engage in protest activity, some of which has included property destruction and street violence.
The roundtable comes after Donald Trump signed an executive order in September designating antifa as a “domestic terrorist organization”.
While Republican lawmakers lined up to praise Donald Trump on Wednesday for brokering a tentative deal on the “first phase” of an agreement between Israel and Hamas to end the fighting in Gaza, and win the release of the remaining Israeli hostages, Palestinian American were more wary.
“President Trump is the peace president! Finally, the living nightmare the hostages have been forced to endure will end and Americans Itay and Omer can be laid to rest,” Joni Ernst, the Iowa senator wrote on social media, referring to Israeli hostages who died in captivity. The tentative agreement would ensure the return of living Israeli hostages, and the remains of those who have died in Gaza since 7 October 2021.
Bernie Moreno, the Ohio senator who introduced a resolution in June calling for Trump to be awarded the Nobel peace prize for bombing nuclear sites in Iran, said the announcement made this a “historic” day, “for the United States, Israel, and peace in the Middle East”.
“President Trump has once again delivered on his promise to achieve peace through strength. An incredible feat that will go down in history. NOBEL PEACE PRIZE!” Moreno added.
Brian Mast, a Florida representative who once served as a civilian volunteer in the Israeli military, and wore his old Israeli uniform to work in the aftermath of the 7 October 2021 Hamas-led attack, also praised Trump.
“President Trump just did what career diplomats never could – he brought the world closer than it’s ever been to peace in Gaza,” Mast, who chairs the House foreign affairs committee, wrote. “This deal only works if Hamas follows through. We don’t trust terrorists, we trust results.”
Donald Trump hailed what he said was a “great day” for the Arab and Muslim world, Israel and all surrounding nations, as well as the US.
“We thank the mediators from Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey, who worked with us to make this Historic and Unprecedented Event happen. BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS!” he posted.
Hamas said on Thursday it had reached the agreement after talks on the proposal, confirming the deal includes an Israeli withdrawal from the enclave and a hostage-prisoner exchange.
Responding to the announcement, the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said: “With God’s help, we will bring them all home.”
National guard troops now protecting federal property in Chicago area, official says
Hello and welcome to the US politics live blog. I’m Tom Ambrose and I’ll be bringing you all the latest news lines over the next few hours.
We start with the news that a small number of national guard troops has started protecting federal property in the Chicago area and assisting law enforcement in Memphis on Wednesday, according to officials.
An “element” of 200 Texas Guard troops were working in the Chicago area, according to a spokesperson for the US Northern Command, who spoke to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity in order to discuss operational details that have not been made public.
The troops are in the city to protect US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) buildings and other federal facilities and law enforcement personnel, Northern Command said online.
The troops, along with about 300 from Illinois, had arrived Tuesday at a US Army Reserve Center in Elwood, 55 miles southwest of Chicago. All 500 troops are under the Northern Command and have been activated for 60 days. The spokesperson wasn’t able to immediately offer details about how the troops were armed.
It comes as Donald Trump on Wednesday called for the imprisonment of Brandon Johnson, Chicago’s mayor, and JB Pritzker, the Illinois governor, accusing them of failing to protect US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) officers.
“Chicago Mayor should be in jail for failing to protect Ice Officers!” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Wednesday morning. “Governor Pritzker also!”
Both Johnson and Pritzker are Democrats. Trump’s remarks come as national guard troops have begun arriving in the Chicago area at the order of the Trump administration, despite objections from Illinois officials, including Pritzker and Johnson.
Read the full story here:
In other developments:
Donald Trump announced that Hamas and Israel have agreed to a tentative deal to end the fighting in Gaza, and free Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners.
News of the Gaza agreement was praised by Republican lawmakers, who called on Trump to be awarded the Nobel Peace prize this week, but greeted with more trepidation by Palestinian Americans.
During White House event, Trump appeared not to recognize the term ‘Habeas Corpus’ and deferred to Kristi Noem, his homeland security secretary. In May, Noem gave a wildly inaccurate definition of the core legal principle that requires that the government provide a public reason for detaining and imprisoning people.
All of the witnesses who contributed testimony at the White House “antifa roundtable” hosted by the president on Wednesday were self-described independent journalists who might better be called partisan conservative social media influencers. The influencers cover leftwing protests in a highly political manner, more akin to opposition research than nonpartisan reporting.
Senate Republicans voted down a war powers resolution that would have checked Trump’s ability to use deadly military force against suspected drug smugglers after Democrats tried to counter the administration’s extraordinary use of the military to destroy boats in the Caribbean.
During the White House “antifa roundtable” on Wednesday, at least one wirness echoed Trump’s false claim that large numbers of people have been killed by left-wing radicals in Portland, Oregon. The correct number of killings by self-described “antifa” radicals in Portland is: one.
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