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House Panel Urges Probe of Biden’s Executive Actions

October 28, 2025 at 6:59 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“The Republican-led House Oversight Committee recommended that the Justice Department investigate all of former President Joe Biden’s executive actions, particularly clemency decisions, and determine whether he authorized them,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

Washington Post: “The report is the result of a five-month-long investigation into accusations made by President Donald Trump and his allies, that aides covered up a decline in Biden’s cognitive ability, and that the Biden administration misused the presidential autopen to issue executive actions without Biden’s direct involvement.”

“The committee said its investigation found there was no record that Biden approved executive actions in several instances, including ones related to presidential pardons. The committee also said it found Biden’s autopen — a mechanical device that can replicate signatures and that presidents often use to quickly sign documents — may have been used to sign off on actions without his knowledge.”

Fed’s Policy Path Looks More Treacherous

October 28, 2025 at 6:57 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“The Federal Reserve has wagered since August that it could afford to lower interest rates even as inflation picked back up for two crucial reasons. Price pressures from President Trump’s tariffs were likely to be temporary, and a weakening labor market would help to keep inflation in check as companies hesitated to make their products more expensive and wage growth stayed subdued,” the New York Times reports.

“The government shutdown, which is entering its fifth week, has made that path all the more treacherous. The federal workers who collect and report economic data on inflation, the labor market, wages and a range of other metrics are no longer performing that work, obscuring officials’ view of the economy at a moment when divisions over the policy outlook have sharpened.”

Trump Asserts the Power to Do Almost Anything

October 28, 2025 at 6:53 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“President Trump is asserting the right to unilaterally use the military wherever, whenever and be the sole judge and jury of his own actions,” Axios reports.

“Of all the unprecedented actions, these might carry the most sweeping consequences — not just now, but for future presidents.”

“The new precedent is being set in real time: The only real limit on Trump appears to be Trump himself. Neither the conservative Supreme Court nor the GOP-led Congress has shown much interest in limiting this executive.”

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Biden Aides Testified on Post-Debate Turmoil

October 28, 2025 at 6:50 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“After Joe Biden’s disastrous debate performance last year his team fell into a civil war, with longtime aides insisting he was fine and others — including his chief of staff and Cabinet members — saying he should consider exiting the presidential race, a new report by a GOP-led House panel says,” Axios reports.

“The report, released Tuesday, is the first time most of Biden’s top aides have gone on the record to respond to questions about the former president’s declining health, and what aides did to obscure it from the public.”

Trump Hails Golden Era in Japan Relations

October 28, 2025 at 6:50 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“President Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi pledged to usher in a new era of cooperation on security and trade, reinvigorating an alliance that Trump described as the foundation of peace in the Pacific,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

Washington Post: With golf, gold and deals, Japan’s new prime minister tries to charm Trump.

Food Banks Brace for 42 Million Without SNAP

October 28, 2025 at 6:48 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Food banks are already seeing a surge as tens of millions of families prepare for their Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits to freeze,” Axios reports.

“The federal government shutdown will stop food aid Nov. 1 for some 42 million Americans, the latest blow for low-income families already struggling with rising costs and shrinking federal benefits.”

Trump Rocks the Boat

October 28, 2025 at 6:39 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“In the early hours of this morning, Trump gave another highly partisan speech to the U.S. military, hailing his own political achievements and repeatedly condemning his Democratic opponents and critics in the media,” Politico reports.

“Trump was addressing hundreds of U.S. Navy personnel onboard the USS George Washington aircraft carrier in Tokyo Bay, Japan, about 6,500 miles from D.C. In a raucous, rambling, hourlong speech that flipped between jokey asides and fiery rhetoric, Trump told the troops that the U.S. military is ‘no longer politically correct’ and should ‘defend our country whatever way we have to.’”

“But what’s most striking is Trump’s willingness to use the troops as a foil for his highly partisan rhetoric. He repeatedly condemned his predecessor Joe Biden, told his audience the 2020 election had been rigged and savaged Democratic governors who resist military incursions into their cities.”

Trump Appeals Conviction in Hush Money Case

October 28, 2025 at 6:34 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“President Donald Trump on Monday asked a New York appeals court to overturn his criminal conviction in the Manhattan hush money case that made him a felon as he plotted a path back to the White House last year,” Politico reports.

“In a 96-page filing, Trump’s lawyers relied on many of the same arguments that Trump previously made before, during and immediately following the 2024 trial, including that the conviction should be thrown out in light of the Supreme Court’s ruling on presidential immunity and that the judge who oversaw the trial should have recused himself because he made political contributions.”

John Thune Is Cool to One-Off Funding Bills

October 28, 2025 at 6:30 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Senate Republican leaders are souring on the idea of forcing votes this week on so-called ‘rifle shot’ bills to pay members of the military and air traffic controllers, believing it would make it easier for Senate Democrats to continue voting against reopening the entire government,” Punchbowl News reports.

Democrats’ Shutdown Coalition Begins to Fray

October 27, 2025 at 9:04 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Democrats grappled Monday with the first major fraying of their coalition amid the government shutdown, with a federal employee union calling for them to stand down four weeks into the standoff,” Politico reports.

“There was no immediate surrender from party leaders, but the union’s plea forced many Democratic lawmakers into a defensive crouch. Their No. 2 Senate leader said it would be a subject of internal conversations this week with bipartisan talks all but ground to a halt.”

Said Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL): “It has a lot of impact. They’ve been our friends.”

NOTUS: Democrats say federal workers don’t want them to cave. Their union says otherwise.

Lawmakers Say Shutdown Won’t End Without Trump

October 27, 2025 at 9:00 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“With Capitol Hill entering its fifth week of gridlock, lawmakers say they have finally identified the key to ending the government shutdown,” NOTUS reports.

“One problem: The key is in Asia.”

Judge Slams Pam Bondi and Kristi Noem

October 27, 2025 at 8:58 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“A federal judge took Attorney General Pam Bondi and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to task Monday for their incendiary, out-of-court statements about Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the Salvadoran native who was illegally deported from the U.S. to his home country before being brought back to face immigrant-smuggling charges,” Politico reports.

“U.S. District Court Judge Waverly Crenshaw ruled the Trump Cabinet members violated a local court rule limiting comments by government officials relating to an ongoing criminal case.”

Why Biden’s Press Secretary Is Leaving the Democrats

October 27, 2025 at 7:13 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

New Yorker: “Karine Jean-Pierre feels that Democrats were so mean to Biden that she is becoming an Independent.”

What Makes This Shutdown Different

October 27, 2025 at 4:56 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Public opinion on the government shutdown has now calcified along party lines — and that’s the real story.

Neither side is paying a political price anymore.

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Why Democrats Say the Shutdown Will Never End

October 27, 2025 at 4:46 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Tara Palmeri: “Behind closed doors last week, Senate Democrats reached a grim conclusion about the government shutdown: it’s not ending anytime soon.”

“The most optimistic estimate circulating among Democratic senior staffers? Late November. If you ask Republicans, it’s worse — December.”

“Why? Because, as one Democratic senator put it at a briefing on Wednesday bluntly, Trump doesn’t even know what’s in his own funding bill.”

“And even worse, as another insider said, ‘Trump’s bored of it.'”

The Immigration Dilemma Facing Democrats

October 27, 2025 at 4:33 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

A new memo from centrist think tank Third Way finds an “electorate caught between two unsatisfying extremes: the cruelty of Trump’s policies and the perception that Democrats can’t maintain order at the border,” Politico reports.

“Support for Republicans’ handling of immigration slightly dropped from the last polling in March to September, down to 56% from 62%. But trust for Republicans’ handling of border security held steady at 66%.”

Democrats, meanwhile, “made modest but significant gains: their 30-point deficit on trust in immigration shrank to 20 points. Yet, the 40-point deficit on border security persisted. That’s a crucial distinction — because while voters are softening in their views toward Trump and his party on immigration overall, they still don’t trust Democrats to manage the border responsibly.”

Trump Asks Justices to Let Him Fire Top Copyright Official

October 27, 2025 at 4:17 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“The Trump administration has asked the Supreme Court to allow the president to remove the government’s top copyright official after a lower court allowed her to remain in her post that is part of the Library of Congress,” the New York Times reports.

“President Trump ordered the removal in May of Shira Perlmutter, the register of copyrights, along with the librarian of Congress, Carla Hayden, who did not challenge her dismissal.”

Races Tighten in Virginia

October 27, 2025 at 4:04 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

A new Wason Center survey of Virginia likely voters shows tightening races across the statewide contests as Election Day is right around the corner.

In the race for governor, Abigail Spanberger (D) leads Winsome Earle-Sears (R) by 7 points, 50% to 43%.

In the race for lieutenant governor, Ghazala Hashmi (D) leads John Reid (R) by 2 points, 47% to 45%.

In the race for attorney general, Jason Miyares (R) now leads Jay Jones (D) by 1 point, 46% to 45%, following reports of a 2022 text messaging scandal involving Jones.

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About Political Wire

goddard-bw-snapshotTaegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.

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