What we covered here
• Consequential week ahead: The government shutdown’s impact is deepening across the country, including for food stamp recipients and health care enrollees. This comes during the final sprint to Tuesday’s elections, which pose an early test of voter response to President Donald Trump’s administration.
• Pressuring Congress: The White House is doubling down on its call for Republicans to end the shutdown by abolishing the filibuster, an unprecedented move that GOP leaders have so far resisted. Democrats look poised to dig in on their demands as Republicans grapple with the politics of the shutdown.
• On the campaign trail: We’re tracking key races in California, New York, Virginia and New Jersey. Democrats are deploying top surrogates, including former President Barack Obama and former Vice President Kamala Harris, as they seek to position the November 4 elections as a referendum on Trump.
Our live coverage has ended for the day. Follow the latest updates or read through the posts below.
Trump says Venezuelan president's days in power are numbered, declines to confirm strike plans
President Donald Trump suggested Sunday that Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s time in power is coming to an end, while refusing to say whether the United States is preparing military action on land.
“I would say yeah. I think so,” Trump said when asked during a “60 Minutes” interview whether Maduro’s days as president are numbered.
When pressed about reports of possible strikes inside Venezuela, Trump declined to confirm or deny them.
“I mean, I’m not saying it’s true or untrue,” he said.
“I’m not going tell you what I’m going do with Venezuela if I was going do it or if I wasn’t going to do it,” he added.
Earlier in the interview, Trump dismissed the idea that the US was headed toward war with Venezuela after a significant military buildup near its coast.
“I doubt it. I don’t think so,” Trump said.
Some context: CNN reported last month that Trump was considering plans to target cocaine facilities and drug trafficking routes inside Venezuela. The US military has steadily carried out strikes on alleged drug boats in international waters over the last two months.
Trump says he “pushed” Netanyahu toward ceasefire deal
President Donald Trump said in a Sunday interview that he pushed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu toward a ceasefire deal in Gaza.
“I pushed him. I didn’t like certain things that he did. And you saw what I did about that,” he said when asked by CBS’ Norah O’Donnell on “60 Minutes” whether he could convince Netanyahu to recognize a Palestinian state.
Trump called Netanyahu “a very talented guy” who is being unfairly treated, pointing toward the prime minister’s long-running corruption trial. Trump has called for the case to be thrown out, and said the US would be “involved in that to help him out.”
Netanyahu and Trump have had an at-times tumultuous relationship, with the US president often frustrated with the Israeli prime minister’s actions in Gaza and Qatar, which tested Trump’s patience as he sought to bring an end to the war Israel-Hamas war.
Trump claims Russia and China are secretly testing nuclear weapons, justifying his call to resume detonations
President Donald Trump suggested Sunday that Russia and China were conducting secret tests of nuclear weapons, which he said justified the United States resuming its own explosive tests after more than three decades.
“I don’t wanna be the only country that doesn’t test,” Trump said on “60 Minutes.”
It was the most expansive explanation from the president for his directive issued last week to the Pentagon to begin nuclear testing, which the US has not conducted since 1992.
He said at the time the US would test “on an equal basis” with Russia and China, neither of which is known to have conducted a nuclear detonation in decades.
But in the interview, Trump said Beijing and Moscow were carrying out their tests in secret.
Earlier Sunday, US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said Trump’s plans were for “system tests” and “not nuclear explosions.”
But the president appeared to have very different plans in mind.
“We’re going to test nuclear weapons like other countries do, yes,” Trump said on “60 Minutes.”
Trump insists ending Senate filibuster is the way to end government shutdown
President Donald Trump showed no signs Sunday that he’s willing to negotiate to end the near-record government shutdown, saying Democrats either needed to capitulate or Republicans should eliminate the Senate filibuster.
“I think we should do the nuclear option, by the way. It’s called ending the filibuster,” Trump said on “60 Minutes,” repeating his demand Republicans do away with the 60-vote threshold required for most legislation.
Republican leaders in the Senate, beginning with Majority Leader John Thune, have opposed such a move, warning it would come back to haunt them should Democrats regain the majority.
Trump brushed off the opposition.
“The Republicans have to get tougher. If we end the filibuster, we can do exactly what we want. We’re not gonna lose power,” he said.
“I like John Thune. I think he’s terrific, but I disagree with him on this point,” he said.
Trump’s suggestion may have the effect of upending fragile negotiations on Capitol Hill over reopening the government. Democrats are looking for guarantees Trump will open discussions on extending health care subsidies that are due to expire at the end of the year.
In the interview, Trump said he wouldn’t put forward his own health care plan, instead saying he would “work on fixing the bad health care that we have.”
Spanberger implores Virginia voters to send a message: "Are you ready to win decisively?"
In the final rally of the closing weekend of Abigail Spanberger’s campaign for Virginia governor, the Democratic nominee implored voters to send a message to the country and the world on Tuesday.
“November 4 is the day we get to set an extraordinary example. Are you ready to win?” Spanberger told supporters in Falls Church on Sunday night. “Are you ready to win decisively? Let’s do it together.”
While Spanberger rarely mentions President Donald Trump by name, she made clear that her election had emerged as a referendum on the administration.
“It’s not about what we’re against, it’s what we are for,” Spanberger said, adding a Virginia victory would send “a message to the country that we expect them to follow in 2026.”
She spoke to a few hundred supporters gathered at the State Theatre in Falls Church, where a high turnout is key to any Democratic victory in Virginia. She was introduced by US Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, both former governors themselves, who also told voters the world was watching Virginia this week.
“The nation and the world want to see some hope,” Kaine said.
“The eyes of the world are on us,” Warner said.
Sherrill declares that "New Jersey is a blue state" on final day of early voting
Rep. Mikie Sherrill, the New Jersey Democratic gubernatorial nominee, asked supporters in Camden on Sunday to help turnout voters to ensure Democrats can extend their control of the governor’s office.
Sherrill criticized her Republican opponent, Jack Ciattarelli, arguing his embrace of President Donald Trump will be damaging to New Jersey voters.
“He’s given Trump an ‘A.’ He said there’s nothing he disagrees with him on. … He told you what he’s going to do,” she said.
Sherrill argued Trump “made a lot of promises” to voters but has failed to cut costs.
“I am fighting for you. I am fighting for affordability. I’m fighting to get your costs down,” she said.
Booker, who made multiple stops with Sherrill on Sunday, railed against Ciattarelli for his support of Trump, saying, “We know that he practices that advanced form of yoga where he wants to bend over backwards like congressional Republicans for Donald Trump.”
The Democratic senator also argued voters will send a message to the country by voting for Sherrill, saying, “the whole nation looks east in this time of darkness.”
Trump says he won't attend Supreme Court arguments on tariffs after floating a visit
President Donald Trump said Sunday he won’t be in attendance at the Supreme Court this week when justices hear oral arguments in a challenge to his tariffs.
Trump once floated the possibility of attending the session, set for Wednesday, to highlight its importance.
But on Sunday, he said he’d given it second thought.
“I don’t want to call a lot of attention to me. It’s not about me, it’s about our country,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, saying he’d be in Miami instead to deliver a speech.
“I wanted to go so badly. I just don’t want to do anything to deflect the importance of that decision,” he explained further. “If we don’t have tariffs, we don’t have national security, and the rest of the world would laugh at us.”
Some context: The case will consider whether Trump had the legal authority to impose tariffs by citing a law known as the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. Trump used those powers to push import tax rates as high as 50% on key trading partners including India and Brazil.
A ruling against the president does not mean the sudden cancellation of all tariffs, but the outcome could radically reshape Trump’s economic strategy.
Trump says he is "not really considering" sending Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine
President Donald Trump said Sunday he was “not really” considering sending long-range Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine to aid in its war against Russia and noted that there was “no final straw” that would tell him Russian President Vladimir Putin was not ready to end the war.
CNN previously reported that the Pentagon has given the White House the green light to provide Ukraine with long-range Tomahawk missiles after assessing that it would not negatively impact US stockpiles.
The Joint Staff informed the White House of its assessment last month, just before Trump met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who has been pushing for the missiles to more effectively target oil and energy facilities deep inside Russia. Tomahawks have a range of around 1,000 miles.
Trump on former Prince Andrew: "I feel badly for the family"
President Donald Trump voiced dismay at the plight of Britain’s royal family days after Prince Andrew was stripped of his titles, saying Sunday the Windsors had suffered a “terrible thing.”
“I feel very badly,” Trump said on Air Force One while returning to Washington from South Florida.
Andrew, once a prince and the Duke of York, is now Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor after King Charles III ordered his titles removed following a mounting scandal involving Andrew’s ties to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Charles also evicted Andrew from the 30-room mansion where he lived rent-free in Windsor Great Park, offering him housing instead on the privately held Sandringham estate in Norfolk.
Trump, whose own ties to Epstein have come under scrutiny, did not wade too deeply into the details of the saga. The woman who accused Andrew of sexually abusing her as a teenager, Virginia Giuffre, was recruited into Epstein’s circle when she worked at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club.
Trump, asked to comment Sunday about the Andrew matter, seemed chagrined on behalf of the royal family for having endured the scandal.
“I mean, it’s a terrible thing that’s happened to the family. That’s been a tragic situation, and it’s too bad,” Trump said. “I mean, I feel badly for the family.”
Trump leaves open chances of sending US troops to Nigeria or conducting airstrikes
President Donald Trump on Sunday left open the possibility of sending US troops to Nigeria or launching airstrikes in the country as he accuses the nation of not stemming violence against Christians.
“Could be,” Trump said aboard Air Force One when asked about the prospect of US troops or strikes.
“I envisage a lot of things. They’re killing a record number of Christians in Nigeria,” Trump told reporters, saying other countries in Africa were doing similar.
Trump said Saturday he has ordered the Defense Department to prepare for possible military action in Nigeria.
Both Christians and Muslims have been victims of attacks by radical Islamists in the country of more than 230 million people. The violence in the country is driven by varying factors: some incidents are religiously motivated and affect both groups, while others arise from disputes between farmers and herders over limited resources, as well as communal and ethnic tensions.
Although Christians are among those targeted, local reports indicate that most victims are Muslims living in Nigeria’s predominantly Muslim north.
Trump heads back to Washington after a weekend of costume parties and golf
President Donald Trump surveyed his private gold-and-black Boeing 757 before departing Palm Beach, Florida, today, capping off a weekend that included a Great Gatsby-themed costume party, a round of golf and satisfied posting about a new marble bathroom.
Trump made the detour to the plane, in which he flew around the country during last year’s presidential election, before boarding Air Force One.
As Trump returns to Washington, millions of Americans remain uncertain about the future of their food assistance programs. A stalemate over funding the federal government persists.
The president’s private plane is parked on the tarmac at Palm Beach International Airport, a few miles from Mar-a-Lago.
Trump defends ICE raids and tactics, saying “they haven’t gone far enough”
President Donald Trump defended Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids during a clip released Sunday from an interview with CBS’ “60 Minutes,” saying he believes enforcement efforts “haven’t gone far enough.”
“They haven’t gone far enough,” he said.
“Because we’ve been held back by the judges, by the liberal judges that were put in by Biden and Obama,” the president added.
When asked whether he was comfortable with the harsh tactics being used in the raids, Trump said he was, claiming that many of the immigrants are murderers and criminals who were thrown out of their countries.
Pressed on the fact that many deportees are not violent criminals but rather workers such as landscapers and construction laborers, Trump interrupted: “landscapers who are criminals.”
Some context: Incidents nationwide have been caught on camera by bystanders, revealing heavy-handed tactics by federal agents since Trump took office in January, experts previously told CNN. Videos over the months have shown ICE agents wearing face coverings and plainclothes, driving unmarked cars, and swarming worksites and streets during their deportation operations. Tensions flared again in Chicago last month when an immigration operation resulted in a crash, bringing anger from residents and tear gas.
Trump’s full interview on CBS is scheduled to air Sunday night.
Trump's approval underwater in new poll as most see the country on the wrong track
About six in 10 Americans disapprove of the way Donald Trump is handling his job as president, according to a new poll from ABC News, the Washington Post and Ipsos.
Majorities disapproved of Trump’s handling of a range of key issues, with 67% saying things in the country are pretty seriously off on the wrong track.
The president’s approval rating in the poll stands at 41% approve to 59% disapprove, similar to the current CNN Poll of Polls average.
Three-quarters (75%) in the new poll say they are concerned about the shutdown, up from 66% who felt that way in a Washington Post poll on the first day the government shut down.
On the issues: Trump’s approval ratings are deeply negative on the economy (37% approve to 62% disapprove).
Most (59%) blame Trump a great deal or a good amount for the current rate of inflation, and more see themselves as worse off (37%) than better off (18%) financially since Trump became president.
Democrats also received negatively: The overall negative perception of Trump expressed in the poll — which extended to questions on foreign policy issues and his efforts to expand the power of the presidency — did not necessarily yield an advantage for Democrats.
More see the Democratic Party as “out of touch” with the concerns of most people in the US today (68%) than say the same about Trump (63%) or Republicans (61%), and the survey finds registered voters about evenly divided with no clear leader in a generic congressional ballot test.
New Jersey's GOP gubernatorial nominee rallies supporters on final day of early voting
New Jersey’s GOP gubernatorial nominee Jack Ciattarelli rallied a small crowd in the Republican-leaning town of Hazlet on the final day of early voting, telling voters, “We need a change.”
In a new line of attack on his Democratic opponent, Rep. Mikie Sherrill, Ciattarelli hammered her as a hypocrite for voting more than a dozen times to reopen the government during the Biden administration but refusing to do so now.
Ciattarelli — who is pitching himself as the consummate “Jersey guy,” in contrast to Sherrill, who moved to the state after her service in the Navy — said a key difference between him and the Democrat is that, “I know where the hell Hazlet is!”
Voter voices: CNN spoke at the event with Joanne Schiffres, a voter from Union Beach who says she supported Hillary Clinton in 2016, Joe Biden in 2020, and then Donald Trump last year. She, like many voters in the Garden State, expressed concern about the high cost of living, including high property taxes and energy costs.
Schiffres, who was previously an independent voter, said she is now a registered Republican and a “true believer in Trump.”
Treasury secretary won't say whether Trump will use emergency funds to restore SNAP benefits
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says SNAP benefits “could be” restored by the Wednesday deadline ordered by a judge last week — but he told CNN’s Jake Tapper “we have got to figure out what the process is.”
Watch a portion of the interview below:
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent tells CNN's @jaketapper SNAP benefits "could be" restored by the court's Wednesday deadline but says "we have got to figure out what the process is."
Federal workers turn to food banks as government shutdown drags on
More than 50 volunteers gathered today outside a warehouse in North Bethesda, Maryland, moving quickly between rows of cars and handing out produce, frozen meals and bags of hot food to federal employees who have been impacted by the government shutdown.
The food bank, So What Else Inc., told CNN more than 500 federal workers requested meals from their organization as the shutdown drags on.
Janis, a federal employee who did not want to disclose her agency, became emotional describing the impact on her military family.
CNN spoke with eight federal employees waiting in line for food assistance. Some fought back tears as they described how the uncertainty of their pay and employment status has taken a toll on their finances and mental health.
House leaders from each party weigh in on Trump’s push to end filibuster
President Donald Trump is urging Senate Republicans to abolish the filibuster in order to end the government shutdown.
Here’s what the top Democrat and Republican in the House are saying today about Trump’s demands:
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries slammed Republicans as “unserious” about reopening the government, noting that the House has been out of session for six weeks and Trump currently seems uninterested in negotiating with Democrats.
“From the very beginning of this presidency he’s enacted a, ‘My way or the highway,’ approach to jam their extreme right-wing ideology down the throats of the American people,” Jeffries said during the interview on CNN’s “State of the Union.”
“Now, he’s saying to his Republican colleagues, senators … ‘Reopen the government,’ and they refuse to do it.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson was also asked today about Trump’s plea to end the filibuster rule, telling Fox News that Republicans have usually opposed doing so to avoid enabling “the worst impulses of the far-left Democratic party.”
Johnson said this call is a result of Trump’s “frustration” with the stalemate.
Democratic senator urges Trump administration to "come clean" on Caribbean boat strikes
Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, urged the Trump administration to “come clean” about its legal justification for authorizing military strikes against alleged drug trafficking boats in the Caribbean.
Warner was disappointed that Secretary of State Marco Rubio shared a promised legal opinion on the strikes with a group of “random Republican senators” in a briefing last week, he said today on CBS’ “Face the Nation.”
Only GOP senators received that initial classified briefing on Thursday, and many Republicans later expressed confusion and dissatisfaction that Democrats were not invited.
Warner said no classified documents on the subject were made available to the Gang of Eight — congressional leaders and top members of intelligence panels from both chambers and parties — until after the GOP briefing.
“If you want to put Americans in harm’s way, it needs to be done on a bipartisan basis,” the Democratic senator said.
Asked about the bipartisan letter that the top Republican and Democrat on the Senate Armed Services committee sent to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth requesting legal justifications for the strikes, Warner responded, “This is what we’re all saying. Come clean.”
Warner suggested that if the administration shares evidence that those taken out in the strikes are “all bad guys” on boats carrying fentanyl, then they should “interdict these boats.”
There will not be “nuclear explosions,” energy secretary says on Trump’s call to test weapons
US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said Sunday that President Donald Trump meant there will be non-nuclear explosions when he vowed last week to begin testing nuclear weapons “on an equal basis.”
“I think the tests we’re talking about right now are system tests,” Wright said in an interview with Fox News. “These are not nuclear explosions,” he clarified. “These are what we call noncritical explosions.”
Wright emphasized that the tests would not pose a public threat, saying: “This is not something where people who live in the Nevada desert should expect to see a mushroom cloud at some point.”
The secretary said the planned testing would focus on new systems.
When asked how much notice he had of Trump’s announcement on nuclear weapons testing, Wright did not give a direct answer but said the president has “clearly been concerned about the United States being the preeminent military power in the world.”
The secretary also noted that the government shutdown is affecting the advancement in nuclear efforts and is “slowing down the modernizing of our nuclear stockpile”