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Trump’s week in review: President secures historic peace deal to bring hostages home as shutdown continues

Trump’s week in review: President secures historic peace deal to bring hostages home as shutdown continues

President Donald Trump secured a historic peace deal between Israel and Hamas this week that will end the war in Gaza and return the hostages, two years after the terrorist network attacked Israel Oct. 7, 2023 — all while the U.S. government remains in a shutdown due to a stalemate in the Senate.  The president made the announcement on his Truth Social platform Wednesday. “I am very proud to announce that Israel and Hamas have both signed off on the first Phase of our Peace Plan,” the president posted. “This means that ALL of the Hostages will be released very soon, and Israel will withdraw their Troops to an agreed upon line as the first steps toward a Strong, Durable, and Everlasting Peace. All Parties will be treated fairly!” HAMAS ACCEPTS TRUMP PEACE PLAN ENDING 2 YEARS OF WAR IN GAZA, RETURNING HOSTAGES The president said the day of the agreement was “a GREAT Day for the Arab and Muslim World, Israel, all surrounding Nations, and the United States of America, and we thank the mediators from Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey, who worked with us to make this Historic and Unprecedented Event happen.” “BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS!” he posted. According to Israeli officials, the living hostages are expected to be released in a single phase within 72 hours. The return of the bodies of deceased hostages will take longer, but Israel insists on their inclusion in the deal. Trump warned that if Hamas did not agree to the deal, Israel would have the full backing of the U.S. to carry out its operational plans in Gaza.  Moments before the president’s announcement, photos emerged from the negotiation room in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, showing senior officials embracing and shaking hands as reports indicated significant progress toward a hostage release deal. Retired Israeli Defense Forces Major General Nitzan Alon was seen shaking hands with Qatar’s prime minister, with U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff in the background. TRUMP UNVEILS 20-POINT PLAN TO SECURE PEACE IN GAZA, INCLUDING GRANTING SOME HAMAS MEMBERS ‘AMNESTY’ On the other side, Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya and other senior officials appeared smiling.  Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement, “With God’s help, we will bring them all home.”   Netanyahu added in a statement in Hebrew, translated: “A great day for Israel. Tomorrow I will convene the government to approve the agreement and bring all our dear hostages home. I thank the heroic soldiers of the IDF and all the security forces — thanks to their courage and sacrifice we have reached this day. I thank from the bottom of my heart President Trump and his team for mobilizing for this sacred mission of freeing our hostages. With God’s help, together we will continue to achieve all our objectives and expand peace with our neighbors.” The terrorist organization Hamas announced in an official statement, “After responsible and serious negotiations conducted by the movement and the Palestinian resistance factions regarding President Trump’s proposal in Sharm el-Sheikh, with the aim of ending the war of extermination against our Palestinian people and the withdrawal of the occupation from the Gaza Strip, Hamas announces the reaching of an agreement that ends the war on Gaza, provides for the withdrawal of the occupation, allows the entry of aid and implements a prisoner exchange.”  TRUMP TEASES TRIP TO THE MIDDLE EAST AS GAZA PEACE DEAL TALKS CONTINUE “We greatly appreciate the efforts of the mediators in Qatar, Egypt and Turkey, and thank U.S. President Donald Trump for his efforts to bring about a final end to the war and the full withdrawal of the occupation from the Gaza Strip. We call on President Trump, the guarantor states of the agreement, and all Arab, Islamic and international parties to oblige the government of the occupation to fulfill all the agreement’s commitments, and not to allow it to evade or delay implementation of the accords.” Trump is now expected to travel to the Middle East Sunday amid continued peace negotiations. “I may go there, sometime toward the end of the week. Maybe on Sunday, actually, and we’ll see,” Trump said Wednesday from the White House as he kicked off a roundtable discussion event focused on the left-wing radical group Antifa.  “We have a great team over there, great negotiators, and there are, unfortunately, great negotiators on the other side also,” Trump added. “But it’s something I think that will happen. Got a good chance of happening.”  Meanwhile, the government shutdown continued this week, as Senate lawmakers again failed to reach a budget agreement. SENATE LEAVES WASHINGTON AS GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN NEARS 3RD WEEK, MILITARY PAY AT RISK Now, senators have left Washington, D.C., and plan to return to Capitol Hill early next week, as Republicans and Democrats in the upper chamber remain in a stalemate. Lawmakers voted deep into the night Thursday on the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act, which advanced on a largely bipartisan vote. But the $925 billion package, which authorizes funding for the Pentagon, effectively was the last hurrah for the week in the upper chamber. While there was discussion of putting the House GOP’s continuing resolution (CR), along with congressional Democrats’ counter-proposal, on the floor for one last vote, the plan never came to fruition. Both likely would have failed for an eighth consecutive time. The president has slammed Democratic leaders for shutting down the government amid one of “the most successful economies.” Trump said he is “happy to work with the Democrats on their Failed Healthcare Policies, or anything else, but first they must allow our Government to re-open.” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and most Democrats say they won’t support funding the government unless Congress agrees to extend expiring Obamacare subsidies. COMEY PLEADS NOT GUILTY IN COURT AFTER INDICTMENT ON ALLEGED FALSE STATEMENTS, OBSTRUCTION Meanwhile, the president also saw two of his political foes face federal indictment this week.  Former FBI Director James Comey appeared in federal court in the Eastern District of Virginia Wednesday morning and pleaded not guilty to two counts of making a

Military veterans in Congress clash over government shutdown as troops face missed paychecks

Military veterans in Congress clash over government shutdown as troops face missed paychecks

FIRST ON FOX: A group of House GOP veterans are pressing Senate Democrats who also served in the military to support Republicans’ federal funding bill and end the government shutdown. U.S. troops are poised to miss their first paycheck of the ongoing shutdown on Oct. 15 with Republicans and Democrats still not able to agree on a path forward by next week. “We are a group of military veterans now serving in the House of Representatives who voted YES for the House’s September 19th Continuing Resolution. We write to you, fellow Veterans now serving in the United States Senate, who have voted NO on that same resolution multiple times. We hope you receive this letter in the manner in which it is intended: as brothers and sisters in arms, not as partisans,” a letter sent on Saturday read. “This short-term measure contains no cuts, no policy riders, and no gimmicks. It simply keeps the government open while giving Congress time to responsibly negotiate the twelve long-term appropriations bills. Most importantly, it ensures that our troops, the same men and women with whom we once served, continue to receive their pay without interruption.” JOHNSON RAISES STAKES ON SCHUMER AS GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN BARRELS INTO WEEK 3 The Senate would need to pass the House GOP’s funding bill by Monday, Oct. 13, for military paychecks to go out on time the following Wednesday, according to Military Times. But the Senate will likely not be in session because Monday is a federal holiday, meaning the next earliest possible vote is Tuesday. Active duty service members, like other federal employees deemed essential, must keep working through a government shutdown. The possibility of them missing their next paychecks has become a particularly painful flashpoint in the standoff on government funding. The Senate has now rejected the House-passed measure — a bill that would keep spending roughly on par with fiscal year (FY) 2025 levels through Nov. 21, called a continuing resolution (CR) — seven times. It passed the House along mostly partisan lines on Sept. 19. But Democrats in the House and Senate were largely infuriated by being sidelined in federal funding talks and are now demanding any spending deal also include an extension of COVID-19 pandemic-era enhanced Obamacare subsidies that are set to expire at the end of this year. Republican leaders who control the House and Senate have said they are willing to hold negotiations on those subsidies, but have insisted the CR must be “clean” without any policy riders. CRs are aimed at giving congressional negotiators more time to strike a longer-term funding deal for FY2026, which began on Oct. 1. “This short-term measure contains no cuts, no policy riders, and no gimmicks. It simply keeps the government open while giving Congress time to responsibly negotiate the twelve long-term appropriations bills. Most importantly, it ensures that our troops, the same men and women with whom we once served, continue to receive their pay without interruption,” the Saturday letter said. “We understand that you oppose certain policies in the One Big Beautiful Bill and that you have strong preferences regarding the future of the Affordable Care Act credits. We respect that you have those priorities. But for the sake of our troops, we ask that you vote for the continuing resolution and assert those policy preferences during subsequent discussions and debates that do not interrupt troop pay.” It’s being led by Rep. Nick LaLota, R-N.Y., a military veteran, and is signed by 21 other House Republicans who also served.  The letter is addressed to seven Senate Democrat military veterans who have all voted against the CR. At the current vote tallies, just five more Democrats are needed to cross the aisle and support the CR for it to overcome the Senate filibuster and move to a final vote. SCREAMING MATCH ERUPTS BETWEEN HAKEEM JEFFRIES, MIKE LAWLER AS GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN CHAOS CONTINUES The letter is being sent after Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., faced increasing pressure from Republicans and Democrats to hold a vote next week on a standalone bill to ensure troops are paid. But Johnson has all but rejected the idea, arguing the onus is on Senate Democrats to pass the GOP-led funding bill that would let the military and others in the federal government get their paychecks on time. Federal workers who miss paychecks during the government shutdown are normally entitled to receive that money as backpay when the shutdown is over.

Portland mayor orders removal of police tape despite federal demand for perimeter at ICE facility, report says

Portland mayor orders removal of police tape despite federal demand for perimeter at ICE facility, report says

Portland Mayor Keith Wilson ordered the removal of police tape near a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility this week despite the federal government’s call for the establishment of a perimeter around the ICE location, according to a report on oregonlive.com. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem visited the ICE facility on Tuesday and Portland Police Bureau Chief Bob Day noted that authorities had the vicinity cordoned off for the occasion.  But the perimeter was removed on Wednesday, according to the report. PORTLAND MAYOR CONDEMNS FEDERAL INTERVENTION, CLAIMS VIDEOS OF ANTI-ICE RIOTS WERE FROM YEARS AGO According to the City of Portland, a message to Day from U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon Scott Bradford stated, in part, that “all federal officers must be able to come and go from the ICE office without harassment or hindrance” and that “Portland must create a perimeter around the ICE office.” He specified that this “perimeter must be at least as large as the perimeter state and local police set up today for the Secretary’s visit.” The city also indicated that in a message to General Counsel for DHS James Percival, Mayor Wilson noted, in part, “You have requested that federal officers be able to ingress and egress from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility without hindrance. The Mayor and our local public safety professionals will continue to evaluate the situation on the ground, and they will continue to make public order decisions based on what they believe will be in the best interest of Portland and our community.” NOEM: TRUMP ADMINISTRATION DOUBLING DOWN WITH NEW FEDERAL FACILITIES IN CHICAGO, PORTLAND Fox News Digital reached out to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon on Friday and to the City of Portland to request comments from Bradford and Wilson, respectively. Last month, President Donald Trump called for deploying National Guard troops into Portland, but his plan has been stymied amid legal wranglings. ‘UNTETHERED FROM REALITY’: LAWYERS FOR TRUMP, OREGON SPAR OVER NATIONAL GUARD DEPLOYMENT IN COURT CLASH CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “At the request of Secretary of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, I am directing Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, to provide all necessary Troops to protect War ravaged Portland, and any of our ICE Facilities under siege from attack by Antifa, and other domestic terrorists. I am also authorizing Full Force, if necessary,” he declared in a September Truth Social post.

Democrats struggle for cohesive messaging strategy amid shutdown standoff

Democrats struggle for cohesive messaging strategy amid shutdown standoff

The government shutdown is poised to enter a third week, and Democrats still appear to be struggling in the search for a cohesive messaging strategy. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., received a barrage of GOP-led attacks on Thursday after he told Punchbowl News, “Every day gets better for us” in reference to the shutdown dragging on. Meanwhile, House Democrats’ group selfie taken on Sept. 29, just before the shutdown, received criticism from both sides of the aisle. Former Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., who’s become a fierce critic of the GOP since leaving office, wrote on X, “These selfie things need to stop guys. Honestly, the democrats were great at social media but social media moved on from them. The kitschy, goofy ‘choose your fighter’ type stuff needs to stop.” Democrats have been fighting to center the discussion on healthcare, and their argument that any deal to reopen the federal government must at least include an extension of COVID-19 pandemic-era enhanced Obamacare subsidies that are set to expire at the end of this year. SENATE DEMOCRATS BLOCK GOP PLAN AGAIN TO REOPEN GOVERNMENT AS MILITARY PAY DEADLINE LOOMS And while polls show that Americans overwhelmingly do support extending the subsidies, surveys taken of the government shutdown have been more mixed, with a significant number of Americans blaming both parties. A new Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Wednesday showed 67% of Americans believe Republicans deserve “a fair amount or a great deal of blame” for the shutdown, compared to 63% for Democrats. A New York Times/Siena poll taken on the eve of the shutdown showed that Democrats had a similarly thin edge over the GOP in the shutdown fight, but that 65% of people did not believe Democrats should shut down the government if their demands were not met. “Democrats keep choosing the wrong fights, including the shutdown fight. At best, the shutdown will give them a political draw where the public will blame both parties,” Julian Epstein, a former Democratic staffer for the House Judiciary Committee, told Fox News Digital. “But they will not get a game change out of this conflict, and the risk for them is the longer it goes on, the public will see it’s the Democrats who are narcissistically voting to shut down the government after losing the election.” During an appearance on “Real Time With Bill Maher” earlier this month, CNN political commentator and former Obama administration appointee Van Jones said Democrats “do the wrong thing at the wrong time for the right reason.” Jones said he was in favor of extending the Obamacare subsidies but argued that it may have been folly for his party to pick that fight over the shutdown before people even got notice of their premiums potentially rising. “I get it, the base is upset … ’Please do something, do anything,’ but the ‘something’ probably shouldn’t be throwing a bunch of people out of work in the federal government and crushing the American government’s ability to function right before the pain was about to start,” he said. And it’s not yet clear if Democrats have an agreed-upon roadmap for how to navigate the shutdown yet. Late last week, just before Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., announced that the House would be out of session for another week while Republicans’ funding bill stalled in the Senate, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., unequivocally told Fox News Digital that “yes,” he would call all House Democrats back to Washington to draw a contrast between the two sides. He walked that back somewhat on Monday, however. When asked by Fox News Digital if he would still call the full caucus back, Jeffries said, “We have a caucus meeting at 6 p.m. today. We’ll have a House Democratic Caucus leadership meeting, that’s the full leadership, tomorrow. And I expect a strong presence of House Democrats throughout here in Washington.” What he did not specify, however, was that the 6 p.m. caucus meeting was virtual. At another press conference this week, Jeffries called a one-year Obamacare subsidy extension compromise bill “laughable” despite it getting support from 11 members of his own Democratic caucus. SENATE ADVANCES 2026 DEFENSE BILL AFTER WEEKS OF DELAY AS SHUTDOWN DRAGS ON He walked those comments back again, “If anything is presented to us, of course, the caucus will consider it in good faith.” But Republicans have also garnered their share of public criticism for shutdown messaging as well. President Donald Trump’s aggressive rhetoric on federal employee layoffs put congressional Republicans in a difficult position earlier this month, though Trump has since softened his language and not yet carried out those firings. The White House’s depiction of Jeffries in a sombrero on multiple occasions has also been panned as racist by critics. Mike Nellis, a Democratic strategist and founder of campaign consulting firm Authentic, said Democrats were doing the right thing in focusing on health care while criticizing Republicans’ messaging. “I think that focusing on the health care subsidies, which are undeniably popular, has been a really smart thing for Democrats to do,” Nellis told Fox News Digital. “I think that the Republicans have played right into their worst tendencies on this, which is, much of their messaging is aggressively online-focused. The sombrero stuff is mildly funny. But then they went all in on it, and they don’t have a good answer to the health care subsidies.” Nellis also argued that Republicans’ touting of a “landslide” electoral victory has set them up for a larger share of the blame. “When you create the conditions where you talked about the mandate that you have and the government shuts down on your watch, you’re responsible for the government shutdown,” he said. Still, he said he would grade Democrats with a “B, B minus” on their messaging, adding that it’s “not perfect.” “Maybe the answer is … Republicans are losing the shutdown fight, rather than Democrats are winning it,” Nellis said. “But I mean, I just think we’ve got a lot more right than a lot

Dems fundraise off government shutdown as Hakeem Jeffries urges supporters to ‘keep the faith’

Dems fundraise off government shutdown as Hakeem Jeffries urges supporters to ‘keep the faith’

As the government shutdown slogs into a third week and service members and federal workers are set to begin missing out on paychecks, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., and other Democrats continue to point to President Donald Trump and Republicans. In an email sent to supporters this week, Jeffries signed off with his usual slogan, “keep the faith.” In the email, Jeffries indicated his party would not bend regarding its demands before reopening the government, saying that “Democrats will continue to stand up to address the Republican healthcare crisis, and we will NOT back down until it’s fixed. America deserves better.” In the Senate, talks have continued in the background behind closed doors, but nothing has quite yet materialized into full-blown negotiations on expiring Obamacare tax credits to find an off-ramp to end the shutdown. DEMS NOT BUDGING ON GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN DEMANDS AHEAD OF HIGH-STAKES TRUMP MEETING, JEFFRIES SUGGESTS If Jeffries’ rhetoric is an indication, the Democrats are nowhere near budging. “Republicans thought we’d back down because of their deepfake videos, threats and lies,” he wrote. “Not a chance. Cancel the Cuts. Lower the Cost. Save Healthcare. Keep the faith.” Other House Democrats have also been actively fundraising off of the shutdown. Rep. Janelle Bynum, D-Ore., has been particularly active, sending several fundraising emails, including one in which her team told supporters, “The stakes couldn’t be higher.” “That’s why Janelle won’t back down from her fight to put Oregonians first and ensure our government works for the people,” wrote Bynum’s team. “If you’re with her, pitch in today to help her keep up this critical fight for hardworking Americans in the House.” In another email to supporters, Bynum complained that “Republicans just launched an attack ad blaming me for the government shutdown.” TOP HOUSE DEM EXPOSES PARTY’S STRATEGY TO BLAME REPUBLICANS FOR LOOMING GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN “They’re targeting me for their failed leadership and the chaos they’ve created in Washington. We can’t allow their shameful attacks to go unanswered,” she wrote, adding, “Will you rush a donation now to help our team push back on National Republicans and stand up for Oregonians?” Rep. Dave Min, D-Calif., wrote in another fundraising email that “if we want to stop these shutdowns from happening in the future, we need to take back control of Congress next year.” “That’s why I’m turning to you: If you’re in a position to give, will you chip in whatever you can to help me defend this toss-up district next year?” he implored. “Democrats’ demands are simple,” he wrote in another email. “Reversal of GOP Medicaid cuts, and the extension of Obamacare tax credits to make health insurance more affordable. Neither of these should be controversial!” he wrote, providing a link to donate. DEMOCRATS ROLL OUT NEW CAMPAIGN ADS TARGETING REPUBLICANS OVER ONGOING GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN Rep. Marcy Kaptur, D-Ohio, cut straight to the chase and askedsupporters in an email to “chip in $10, $25, or whatever makes sense for you to stand with me against this reckless shutdown and help us take back the House next fall.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Speaking with reporters on Friday, Jeffries tripled down on his rejection of the GOP’s continuing resolution spending bill that would reopen the government, calling it a “partisan spending bill that continues to gut the healthcare of the American people and threatens to raise the costs of living on tens of millions of people.” Fox News Digital reached out to the offices of Jeffries, Bynum, Min and Kaptur for comment but did not immediately receive a response.