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:Rand Paul Says Blowing Up Boats Is ‘What China Or Iran Would Do’Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) once again admonished Trump for dropping missiles on suspected drug-trafficking boats instead of allowing the Coast Guard to intercept them like normal.“Blowing up boats without proof isn’t justice; it’s what China or Iran would do. There’s no evidence of fentanyl and no due process,” Paul wrote today on social media.“This isn’t about blowing up drug boats, it’s about talks of regime change in Venezuela,” he went on, echoing claims Venezuelan President Maduro has made Trump’s actual motivations.“We’ve seen how that ends: chaos, not freedom. America shouldn’t kill first and nation-build later.”See All UpdatesClose