President Donald Trump traveled through Asia this week, sitting down for a high-stakes meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, which he described as “truly great,” while Americans at home bore the brunt of the ongoing government shutdown, which is entering its second month.Democrats now find themselves in a bind as they have succeeded in framing health care as the issue at the heart of the stalemate but are grappling with the lapse of federal food assistance for millions of Americans set to begin Saturday.The shutdown is also likely to lead to more flight delays as the Federal Aviation Administration grapples with staffing shortages. At the same time, federal employees are working without pay, and food banks are bracing for a surge in demand.The president, though, seems to have his mind focused elsewhere as he instructed the Pentagon to immediately resume testing of nuclear weapons to ensure the U.S. keeps up with its rivals.“With others doing testing, I think it’s appropriate that we do also,” he told reporters after departing South Korea to return to the U.S.The Trump administration is continuing to add pressure on Venezuela, with the country’s authoritarian leader, Nicolás Maduro, now accusing the U.S. of “fabricating a new eternal war.”See previous updates here, and read the latest below:'Pearl Clutching': JD Vance Waves Off Outcry Over Young Republicans' Racist Group ChatsJD Vance on Tuesday declined to condemn the national leadership of Young Republicans after a Politico report exposed their racist and antisemitic group chats.Instead, the vice president pointed his finger across the aisle, suggesting that another text scandal from 2022 involving Virginia's Democratic attorney general candidate Jay Jones is "far worse" and somehow cancels the Young Republicans story out. Jones is under fire for a series of text messages that referenced shooting ex-Virginia House Speaker Todd Gilbert.Vance posted a segment of those texts to X, saying "I refuse to join the pearl clutching when powerful people call for political violence."National Young Republicans, meanwhile, are calling for resignations after the publication of their leaders' chats, in which they celebrated Hitler and referred Black people as monkeys.This is far worse than anything said in a college group chat, and the guy who said it could become the AG of Virginia. I refuse to join the pearl clutching when powerful people call for political violence. pic.twitter.com/kV57Wq7BLG— JD Vance (@JDVance) October 14, 2025See All UpdatesClose