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:Mike Johnson Warns Against Scrapping Filibuster Despite Trump 'Anger'At his daily press conference Friday, House Speaker Mike Johnson warned against abolishing the Senate's filibuster rule despite Trump's call to do just that.Johnson, noting the House does not have the same rule, suggested that Trump floated the nuclear option because of his "anger" at the continued government stalemate.But he warned of the impact if "the shoe was on the other foot" and the Democrats held the Senate.He said, "They've said what they would do. They would pack the Supreme Court. They would make Puerto Rico and D.C. states. They would ban firearms. They would do all sorts of things that would be very harmful for the country."Mike Johnson on Trump calling to blow up the filibuster: “What you're seeing is an expression of the president's anger at the situation…It's not my call, I don't have a say in this. It's a Senate chamber issue…The filibuster has traditionally been viewed as a very important… pic.twitter.com/6IYDosBs0R— The Bulwark (@BulwarkOnline) October 31, 2025See All UpdatesClose