Trump Dismisses Dems’ Demands for Shutdown Talks
TGIF! Officials today announced that they had a suspect in custody in the killing of Charlie Kirk. And President Trump announced the next city in his federal crackdown on crime: Memphis, Tennessee. "We're going to Memphis," Trump said in an appearance on Fox News. "National guard and anybody else we need, and by the way, we'll bring in the military, too, if we need it." Trump indicated that Tennessee's Republican governor, Bill Lee, and Memphis's Democratic mayor, Paul Young, both agreed to have federal troops move in.
Here's what else you should know as we head into the weekend.
22-Year-Old Arrested in Kirk Assassination
A suspect in the assassination of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk was arrested, officials announced Friday. Tyler Robinson, 22, reportedly turned himself in and is being held without bail on suspicion of aggravated murder, felony discharge of a firearm causing serious bodily harm, and obstruction of justice charges. Formal charges are expected to be filed next week.
Speaking at a morning news conference, Republican Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said that Kirk's killing, as an act of political violence that threatens freedom of expression and a clash of ideas, was bigger than an attack on just one individual. "It is an attack on all of us. It is an attack on the American experiment. It is an attack on our ideals," he said.
He added that society faces a stark choice. "We can always point the finger at the other side," he said. "At some point we have to find an off ramp, or it's going to get much, much worse." At the end of the press conference, Cox added a call for people to log off social media. "Social media is a cancer on our society right now," he said. "I would encourage people to log off, turn off, touch grass, hug a family member, go out and do good in your community."
'Don't Even Bother Dealing With Them': Trump Dismisses Dems' Demands for Shutdown Talks
President Trump on Friday dismissed the idea of a bipartisan deal to fund the government and avert a shutdown on October 1, suggesting in a lengthy and wide-ranging morning interview seated on the "Fox & Friends" set that Republicans could somehow keep agencies running without any negotiations with Democrats, whose votes would be needed to pass a bill in the Senate.
"We have to get Republican votes. That's all. If we do, we have the majority," Trump said in a lengthy and wide-ranging morning interview seated on the "Fox & Friends" set. Republicans have the majority in both the House and Senate, but they need help from Democrats to clear the 60-vote threshold in the Senate.
Asked about the need to get 60 votes, Trump lashed out at Democrats.
"Here's the problem. The Democrats have - they're sick. There's something wrong with them," Trump said. "They want to give away money to this and that and destroy the country. If you gave them every dream, they would not vote for it. ... Don't even bother dealing with them. We will get it through because the Republicans are sticking together for the first time in a long time."
Fact check: Sticking together still won't get Republicans to the magic number.
Republican congressional leaders are planning to vote on a "clean" short-term funding bill that would largely keep spending at current levels until late November. Senate Majority Leader John Thune has also thrown cold water on the near-term possibility of a healthcare deal. He told Punchbowl News on Thursday that, while he's open to discussions about extending the higher Affordable Care Act tax credits, he won't agree to do so as part of a short-term spending bill.
Thune also said he thinks Democrats will force a government shutdown. "I think they see it as politically advantageous to have a shutdown," Thune said. "I think their base is clamoring for that. They want a fight with the Trump administration. But they don't have a good reason to do it. And I don't intend to give them a good reason to do it."
Democrats reject a 'clean' stopgap: Congressional Democratic leaders said Thursday that they'll demand healthcare concessions as part of any bipartisan funding deal. Those concessions could include extending enhanced subsidies for Affordable Care Act insurance policies or restoring Medicaid cuts enacted as part of the recent GOP megabill - either of which could ultimately redound to Republicans' political benefit.
Democrats face grassroots pressure to deliver a win on healthcare in the funding fight. Politico reports that progressive activist group MoveOn this week called on Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and top Democratic appropriators to "hold the line and refuse support for any funding bill that doesn't reverse Republicans' massive health care cuts."
In an interview with the Associated Press on Thursday, Schumer indicated he's willing to risk a shutdown, unlike in March, when he helped Republicans pass an extension of federal funding. "It's a different situation now than then," he said. He suggested that a shutdown wouldn't necessarily worsen the political environment under Trump. "It will get worse with or without it, because Trump is lawless," Schumer said.
He also said Democrats want Republicans to agree that they won't look to claw back any bipartisan funding approved by Congress. "How do you pass an appropriations bill and let them undo it down the road?" Schumer said.
Trump's Tariffs, Immigration Crackdown Will Weigh on the Economy, CBO Says
Some of President Trump's signature policies will serve as a drag on economic growth in the short term, neutralizing the positive economic effects from the tax cuts included in the massive Republican policy bill that became law in July, according to a new analysis released Friday by the Congressional Budget Office.
In a revised economic outlook, CBO identified three major factors influencing the changes in its projections covering 2025 to 2028: tax cuts, higher tariffs and lower net immigration. This year, as a result of those factors, CBO expects gross domestic product to grow at a rate of 1.4%, which is 0.5 percentage points lower than its January estimate. Inflation is projected to hit 3.1%, nine-tenths of a percentage point higher than previously estimated, and the unemployment rate is projected to rise to 4.5%, two-tenths of a point higher.
CBO said these results are "primarily because the negative effects on output stemming from new tariffs and lower net immigration more than offset the positive effects of provisions of the reconciliation act this year."
In 2026, the economy is now projected to grow at a rate of 2.2%, which is 0.4 percentage points higher than previously expected. The reduction in immigration still weighs on growth, but the CBO assumes uncertainty over the tariffs diminishes, allowing higher consumption and private investment to dominate the growth picture.
In 2027 and 2028, lower immigration continues to drag on growth, but domestic production gets a boost from the tariffs, resulting in a growth rate of 1.8%, basically the same as projected in January.
The overall result is that Trump's main economic policies end up increasing GDP by one-tenth of a percentage point by 2028, while inflation and unemployment are unchanged - a modest difference given the severity of some of the changes affecting trade and immigration.
The bottom line: The Trump administration has portrayed its tax cuts, tariff increases and immigration crackdown as "rocket fuel" for the economy, but according to the CBO, those policies push the economy in different directions, resulting in only a modest change in growth overall.
Fiscal News Roundup
- 'Don't Even Bother Dealing With Them,' Trump Says of Democrats' Shutdown Demands – Politico
- Schumer Warns of a Shutdown if Republicans Don't Accept Democrats' Health Care Demands – Associated Press
- MoveOn Demands Schumer and Jeffries 'Hold the Line' on Health Care in Shutdown Fight – Politico
- Raskin Says Dems Must Use Funding Fight to Stop Trump's Lawbreaking – New Republic
- How an Obamacare Deadline Is Colliding With Shutdown Negotiations – New York Times
- Trump Policies to 'Drag' on Economic Growth, CBO Predicts, Offsetting Megabill Gains – Politico
- $10 Million in Contraceptives Have Been Destroyed on Orders From Trump Officials – New York Times
- House Pushes to Conference First Batch of 2026 Funding Bills With Senate – The Hill
- Charlie Kirk Shooting Spurs Push for More Lawmaker Security Funding – The Hill
- US Urges G7 to Impose Up to 100% Tariffs on China and India Over Russian Oil – Financial Times
- Trump Officials to Link Covid Shots to Child Deaths, Alarming Career Scientists – Washington Post
- After Lagging Far Behind, NIH Now Seems on Pace to Spend Its Entire $47 Billion Budget by Sept. 30 – STAT+
- Surging Health Costs Bode Ill for Workers Next Year – Axios
- Homeless Funding Was Limited to Groups Aligned With Trump Policies, Suit Says – New York Times
- Musk Got DOGE's Mission "Backward," Lutnick Says – Axios
- Social Security COLA May Be Higher in 2026, New Estimate Shows – The Hill
Views and Analysis
- How Democrats Can Shut Down the Government With Voters on Their Side – Jonathan Alter, New York Times
- How to Save Social Security Without Screwing Over Poor People – Dylan Matthews, Vox
- The Economy Looks Weaker. The Federal Reserve Looks Weaker, Too – Washington Post Editorial Board
- The Battle for the Fed Is About Much More Than Interest Rates – Gillian Tett, Financial Times
- The Fate of Trump's Tariffs Hinges on This Supreme Court Doctrine – Jason Willick, Washington Post
- A Potentially K-Shaped Economy Creates Dilemmas for the Fed – Vivekanand Jayakumar, The Hill
- Labor Hoarding Looks Close to a Painful End – Conor Sen, Bloomberg
- What Would a New Treasury-Fed Accord Look Like? – Saleha Mohsin, Bloomberg
- With Hyundai Raid, Trump's Immigration Crackdown Runs Into His Push for Foreign Investment – Didi Tang and Paul Wiseman, Associated Press
- ICE Raids Will Shackle US Manufacturing Ambitions – Bloomberg Editorial Board
- The Era of Step-on-a-Rake Capitalism – Derek Thompson, The Atlantic
- America's Friends Will Never Trust the US Again – Andreas Kluth, Bloomberg
- Trump's Policies Are Endangering Your Health – New York Times Editorial Board
- Why Your Health Insurance May Be About to Cost a Lot More – Peter Whoriskey and Paige Winfield Cunningham, Washington Post
- Health Care Costs Are Soaring. Blame Insurers, Drug Companies - and Your Employer – Maria Aspan, NPR
- A Guaranteed Income Won't Stop People From Wanting to Work – Abhijit V. Banerjee and Esther Duflo, Wall Street Journal