Good Thursday evening. In this edition: Senate rejects GOP bill to pay some federal workers; and Vance denounces Israeli vote on annexing the West Bank.
Plus, San Francisco, Putin, NBA, Xi, Binance and Adams.
Government Shutdown
The Senate rejected a Republican bill that would have paid some federal workers, including active-duty military members, during the ongoing government shutdown, now in its 23rd day.
The measure fell short of the 60 votes needed to advance, failing 54–45, with three Democrats — Sens. John Fetterman (PA), Jon Ossoff (GA) and Raphael Warnock (GA) — joining Republicans in support.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) switched his vote to "no," making use of procedural move that will allow him to request a revote later.
The bill, introduced by Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), would have kept paychecks flowing to "excepted" federal employees required to work during the shutdown, including military personnel and contractors.
It was the latest attempt by Republicans to try to peel off Democrats amid the funding impasse and put them on record against paying federal workers.
Sen. Thune chastised Democrats after the vote, saying it would be a tough vote for them to explain to their federal-worker constituents.
"I think the other side is in a very bad head space right now to vote against something like that," he said.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) dismissed the bill as a "ruse," saying it would give the Trump administration too much discretion over which employees receive pay.
"It doesn't end the pain of the shutdown — it extends it," he said. "The only way to pay every federal worker is for Republicans to get serious, sit down with Democrats, avert their health care crisis and reopen the government."
Democrats offered two competing proposals, but Republicans blocked both from receiving floor votes.
Sen. Chris Van Hollen's (D-MD) bill would have paid all federal employees throughout the shutdown and prohibit any more layoffs by the Office of Management and Budget.
Sen. Gary Peters's (D-MI) bill was a narrower proposal that would have paid all federal employees up through the day the bill was enacted.
The Senate next returns for votes on Monday, when the shutdown will be in its 27th day with no off-ramp in sight.
Vice President JD Vance said he was insulted by the Israeli Knesset's symbolic vote on annexing the West Bank, which took place during his trip to Israel.
"If it was a political stunt, it was a very stupid political stunt, and I personally take some insult to it," he told reporters as he departed Tel Aviv, calling the vote "weird."
Ultranationalists in the Israeli parliament narrowly approved a symbolic preliminary vote on Wednesday in support of annexing the West Bank, in an apparent attempt to embarrass Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
It would still require three additional votes to take effect, something the prime minister is unlikely to allow to happen.
Prime Minister Netanyahu denounced the vote, calling it a "deliberate political provocation."
"The Knesset vote on annexation was a deliberate political provocation by the opposition to sow discord during Vice President JD Vance's visit to Israel," his office said in a statement, noting the bills were sponsored by opposition members.
The Trump administration is focused on shoring up the Gaza peace deal and opposes Israeli annexation of the West Bank, which Arab countries have warned would undermine regional integration efforts.
"The policy of the Trump administration is that the West Bank will not be annexed by Israel," Vice President Vance said. "That will continue to be our policy, and if people want to take symbolic votes, they can do that, but we certainly weren't happy about it."
President Trump took it a step further, telling Time magazine that if Israel were to annex the land, it would "lose all of its support" from the U.S.
President Trumpbacked off his plan to "surge" federal law enforcement to San Francisco, citing conversations with "friends" in the area and the city's Democratic mayor, Daniel Lurie. "I told him, 'It's an easier process if we do it, faster, stronger, and safer but, let's see how you do?'" the president wrote on social media.
Russian President Vladimir Putindownplayed the impact of the U.S. sanctions announced Wednesday targeting his country's two largest oil companies and said the move would not sway him. "The new U.S. sanctions are an attempt to put pressure on Russia," he told reporters. "No self-respecting country ever does anything under pressure. Russia is a self-respecting country."
FBI Director Kash Patelannounced indictments against more than 30 individuals — including current and former NBA players — in connection with two major criminal cases involving sports gambling and rigged poker games tied to organized crime. Mr. Patel said the schemes involved "tens of millions of dollars" in theft, fraud and robbery.
The White Houseannounced President Trump will meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday in Busan, South Korea, on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit. The meeting comes on the heels of President Trump threatening to impose 100% tariffs on Chinese imports in retaliation for Beijing imposing strict export controls on its rare earth materials. The president leaves Friday night for his lengthy trip to Asia, which will also include stops in Malaysia and Japan.
President Trumppardoned Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, who created the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange and served prison time for failing to stop criminals from using the platform to move money connected to illegal activities, including child sex abuse, drug trafficking and terrorism.
New York Mayor Eric Adams endorsed former Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the city's mayoral race, seeking to consolidate support to stop the momentum of Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani.
For your radar…
Sens. James Lankford (R-OK) and Chris Coons (D-DE) are this week's guests on C-SPAN's "Ceasefire," which will also include conversations with Republican strategist Ron Bonjean and Democratic strategist Chuck Rocha. Watch Friday on C-SPAN at 7pm ET.
Word for Word will be off Friday. Have a great weekend!
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