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Democrats Float New Shutdown Demand

October 16, 2025 at 6:43 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“President Donald Trump’s decision to fire thousands of federal workers this month was meant to pressure Democrats into quickly ending the government shutdown. Instead, it could have the opposite effect,” Politico reports.

“As the shutdown enters its 15th day, many Democrats say they want a commitment that employees subjected to reductions-in-force, or RIFs, will be rehired before they agree to reopen the government — even as courts independently act to curb the firings.”

Interestingly, Bloomberg reports Sen. Mike Crapo (R-ID) plans to ask Trump to undo Treasury layoffs.

Thune Offers Democrats Vote on Obamacare Subsidies

October 16, 2025 at 6:42 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) told MSNBC that he has privately told Democratic leaders that, if they need a vote on extending Obamacare subsidies in exchange for opening the government, he’s willing to make that deal.

Said Thune: “We can guarantee you get a vote by a date certain. At some point, Democrats have to take ‘yes’ for an answer.”

Trump Keeps Talking

October 16, 2025 at 6:37 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Politico: “The president has done something like five-and-a-half hours of public speaking this week alone, including seven Q&A sessions with members of the press … And it’s only Thursday morning. (And yes, he’ll be inviting press back into the Oval Office for another announcement at 3 p.m. this afternoon.)”


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Trump Plans IRS Overhaul to Enable Pursuit of Enemies

October 16, 2025 at 6:32 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“The Trump administration is preparing sweeping changes at the Internal Revenue Service that would allow the agency to pursue criminal inquiries of left-leaning groups more easily,“ the Wall Street Journal reports.

“A senior IRS official involved in the effort has drawn up a list of potential targets that includes major Democratic donors.”

“The undertaking aims to install allies of President Trump at the IRS criminal-investigative division, or IRS-CI, to exert firmer control over the unit and weaken the involvement of IRS lawyers in criminal investigations… The proposed changes could open the door to politically motivated probes and are being driven by Gary Shapley, an adviser to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.”

Meanwhile, Trump critics shared this video of JD Vance warning last year this type of IRS activity would mean “we don’t live in a free country any more.”

Trump Is Only Accelerating

October 16, 2025 at 6:27 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Playbook: “We’re about to hit the nine-month mark of Donald Trump’s second term as president. And while the start was an absolute whirlwind — readers may recall ‘days of thunder,’ ‘flooding the zone’ and all of that — you need to brace yourselves. Because Trump is only accelerating as we head toward the end of his first year.”

“Across every major policy area he cares about, the president and his team are amping up the pace and pushing the boundaries beyond what many thought possible. Trump’s astonishing first 100 days can now be seen not as the policy blitz of a president keen to get his radical work done early — but as laying the ground for something far bigger to come.”

The Arc de Trump?

October 15, 2025 at 11:29 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

USA Today: “At a dinner to thank donors for contributing to his longtime passion project – a $250 million, 90,000 square-foot ballroom at the White House — President Donald Trump unveiled a new scheme.”

“Standing behind a podium in the East Room on Oct. 15, while guests sat at round tables, he picked up a 3-D model of a giant arch, reminiscent of Paris’s imposing Arc de Triomphe. He pointed to a table with a map showing its proposed location across from the Lincoln Memorial. The arch would serve as a gateway to Washington D.C. while entering through the Arlington Memorial Bridge from the Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.”

Lawmakers Spend Big Money on Personal Security

October 15, 2025 at 11:26 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Federal lawmakers and political committees have diverted millions of dollars of campaign contributions this year to cover the cost of security, with campaigns of political lightning rods such as Sen. Ted Cruz and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez reporting five- and six-figure security bills last quarter alone,” NOTUS reports.

GOP Lawmaker May Face Criminal Charges

October 15, 2025 at 11:25 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“An attorney for the woman granted a restraining order against Rep. Cory Mills (R-FL) said she hopes he is removed from public office, and hinted that he might face future criminal charges,” NewsNation reports.

Town Hall on the Government Shutdown

October 15, 2025 at 8:45 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

CNN will host a live town hall with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders tonight at 9 p.m. ET.

The studio audience will include people “who have been directly affected by the shutdown.”

Leave your reactions in the comments.

Trump Invites Ballroom Donors to Glitzy Dinner

October 15, 2025 at 4:48 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“More than three dozen organizations and individuals, including companies with business before the federal government, are expected to attend a dinner with President Trump on Wednesday evening after opening their checkbooks to support the new $250 million ballroom under construction at the White House,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

Brown Rejects White House Deal for Special Treatment

October 15, 2025 at 4:47 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Brown University on Wednesday rejected a White House proposal to steer public money toward schools that aligned with President Trump’s priorities, defying the federal government it had negotiated with over the summer,” the New York Times reports.

“Brown was the second university to rebuff the government’s proposal of so-called compact, after M.I.T. did so last week. But Brown’s decision was likely to carry extraordinary weight in higher education because it had previously reached a settlement with the Trump administration to restore hundreds of millions of dollars in federal research funding.”

Bonus Quote of the Day

October 15, 2025 at 4:15 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“I just want to speak directly to the president. I will not be a mayor like Mayor Adams who will call you to stay out of jail. I won’t be a disgraced governor like Andrew Cuomo who will call you to ask how to win this election. I can do those things on my own. I will, however, be a mayor who is ready to speak at any time to lower the cost of living. That’s the way I’m going to lead this city. That’s the partnership I want to build.”

— Zohran Mamdani, on Fox News.

Humans Peak in Midlife

October 15, 2025 at 4:13 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

A new study of cognitive decline finds “individuals best suited for high-stakes decision-making roles are unlikely to be younger than 40 or older than 65.”

Mass Firings Could Reach 10,000 During the Shutdown

October 15, 2025 at 4:09 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“OMB director Russell Vought said Wednesday that more than 10,000 federal workers could end up getting fired during the shutdown,” Axios reports.

“That’s more than twice as many terminations as the White House said it was conducting just last week in court filings.”

Israel Warns Gaza Deal Could Stall

October 15, 2025 at 4:01 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Israel on Wednesday told the Trump administration that Hamas isn’t doing enough to recover the bodies of dead Israeli hostages, and the Gaza deal can’t move into the next phase until that changes,” Axios reports.

JD Vance Downplays Racist Chat Group

October 15, 2025 at 3:29 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Vice President JD Vance downplayed bigoted messages in Young Republicans’ group chats, suggesting they were nothing more than “edgy, offensive jokes,” Politico reports.

Said Vance: “The reality is that kids do stupid things, especially young boys. They tell edgy, offensive jokes. That’s what kids do. And I really don’t want us to grow up in a country where a kid telling a stupid joke — telling a very offensive, stupid joke — is cause to ruin their lives.”

Capitol Police Probe Swastika in GOP Lawmaker’s Office

October 15, 2025 at 3:21 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“The U.S. Capitol Police was called about an American flag altered to include a swastika and displayed inside the office of Rep. Dave Taylor (R-OH),” Politico reports.

Trump Mulls Overhaul to Favor White Refugees

October 15, 2025 at 3:18 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“The Trump administration is considering a radical overhaul of the U.S. refugee system that would slash the program to its bare bones while giving preference to English speakers, white South Africans and Europeans who oppose migration,” the New York Times reports.

“The proposals, some of which already have gone into effect, would transform a decades-old program aimed at helping the world’s most desperate people into one that conforms to Mr. Trump’s vision of immigration — which is to help mostly white people who say they are being persecuted while keeping the vast majority of other people out.”

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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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