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The Latest: Judge orders senior Border Patrol official to meet her daily to discuss use of force

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The Latest: Judge orders senior Border Patrol official to meet her daily to discuss use of force
News

News

The Latest: Judge orders senior Border Patrol official to meet her daily to discuss use of force

2025-10-29 06:33 Last Updated At:06:40

U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis on Tuesday ordered a senior U.S. Border Patrol official to meet her daily “to hear about how the day went” after weeks of confrontations between immigration agents and the public in the Chicago area.

The immigration sweeps from Operation Midway Blitz have produced more than 1,800 arrests and complaints of excessive force.

Ellis also asked Border Patrol’s Greg Bovino to submit by Friday all use-of-force reports from Border Patrol agents involved in the operation from Sept. 2 through Tuesday.

The courtroom on Tuesday gave the feeling of a principal’s office as Ellis detailed examples of incidents where she felt her previous order restricting the use of force, including tear gas, was not being followed.

Here's the latest:

North Korea said Wednesday it has fired sea-to-surface cruise missiles into its western waters, in another display of its growing military capabilities as Trump travels to South Korea for a regional summit.

North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency described Tuesday’s test as a success and claimed that the weapons would contribute to expanding the operational sphere of the country’s nuclear-armed military.

South Korea’s military didn’t immediately confirm whether it had detected the tests.

The North Korean report came hours before an expected summit between Trump and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung in the city of Gyeongju, where South Korea is hosting this year’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meetings.

Nvidia has been shut out of the Chinese market, and has taken China out of its quarterly forecast, CEO Jensen Huang said Tuesday in Washington, D.C.

“We are currently completely shut out of China,” Huang said. “Our market share has gone from 95% to 0%, which is very, very, very disappointing.”

Earlier this year, Huang had persuaded the U.S. government to allow Nvidia to sell its H20 chips to China, but Beijing reportedly banned the AI chips in September due to alleged security concerns.

Washington does not allow the sale of the most advanced American chips to China, while China has vowed to achieve self sufficiency in semiconductor production to power its tech race with the United States.

That was the word from California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, who told supporters in an email this week that his campaign has met its budget to approve revamped districts to favor Democrats in the fight to control the U.S House.

“We have hit our budget goals and raised what we need” to pass so-called Proposition 50, Newsom wrote, saying he’d raised $38 million in online small-dollar donations for the push to erase up to five Republican House seats in the state. “You can stop donating.”

Voting concludes Nov. 4, but there was a hitch. Newsom signaled that he’d be appealing for money to funnel to House political battles in other states, after President Donald Trump’s call for Republicans to redraw districts ahead of next year’s elections set off an outbreak of unexpected jerrymandering in state legislatures.

Indeed, the email was followed a day later by a solicitation for donations to help Democrats in Indiana, where Republican Gov. Mike Braun has called for a special legislative session on congressional redistricting to begin Nov. 3.

“If Democrats take back the House, we effectively end the Trump presidency in November of next year,” Newsom wrote.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer says Democrats will introduce a bill that would extend funding during the government shutdown for two food assistance programs used by millions of low-income Americans.

The Department of Agriculture has announced that no SNAP benefits, formerly food stamps, will be issued Saturday. Money is also set to run out early next month for another aid program known as WIC that supports millions of low-income mothers and young children.

The legislation is unlikely to get the unanimous consent needed to pass the Senate on an expedited basis.

Schumer said the focus of the bill is “to make sure no child goes hungry, no family goes without food.”

He said SNAP was funded during a lengthy shutdown in Trump’s first term and questioned why it was different now, saying Trump was “choosing to have kids go hungry.”

The Senate Democratic leader showed no signs of ending the government shutdown without a fix for the skyrocketing premium rates.

Americans will be “aghast, aghast” once they see the new insurance rates at the start of open enrollment Saturday.

That, he believes, will put pressure on Trump and the Republicans to negotiate with Democrats.

The vice president didn’t bring up the funding cliff for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, known as SNAP, during a closed-door luncheon, according to Ohio Sen. Jon Husted.

The Trump administration has said funds will run out for the program Friday, potentially leaving millions of Americans struggling to cover their grocery bills.

After the meeting, Vance told reporters that “we are trying as much as possible to ensure that critical food benefits get paid,” but did not offer assurances that the administration would actually reconfigure funding to cover the program. The administration has already rejected the use of more than $5 billion in contingency funds to keep benefits flowing into November.

Texas Sen. Ted Cruz emerged from a Senate GOP lunch saying that “beef was a major topic of discussion” with Vice President JD Vance.

“There was unanimity in the room that we should be standing strongly with our cattle ranchers,” said Cruz. He said it was a “vigorous discussion” and that Vance listened to the “strenuous views” from senators.

Trump’s plan to bring down record-high beef prices by boosting imports from Argentina has seen pushback from GOP lawmakers.

Asked if the topic was discussed at the lunch, Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley chuckled and said that “there were thoughts on it.” Hawley said that in response, Vance “just reiterated what the president has said.”

“Which is that they’re big supporters of farmers,” said Hawley.

A federal judge in San Francisco has indefinitely blocked the Trump administration from firing federal workers during the government shutdown.

U.S. District Judge Susan Illston on Tuesday granted a preliminary injunction that bars the firings while a lawsuit challenging them plays out. She had previously issued a temporary restraining order against the job cuts that was set to expire Wednesday. Illston, who was nominated by Democratic President Bill Clinton, has said she believes the evidence will ultimately show the mass firings were illegal and in excess of authority.

The Republican administration has been slashing jobs in education, health and other areas it says are favored by Democrats. Lawyers for the government argued personnel issues should be heard in a separate venue.

Vice President JD Vance said Tuesday he believes U.S. military members will be paid at the end of the week, but did not specify how the Trump administration will reconfigure funding in the second-longest government shutdown.

The funding fight in Washington gained new urgency this week as millions of Americans face the prospect of losing food assistance, more federal workers miss their first full paycheck and recurring delays at airports snarl travel plans.

“We do think that we can continue paying the troops, at least for now,” Vance told reporters after lunch with Senate Republicans at the Capitol. “We’ve got food stamp benefits that are set to run out in a week. We’re trying to keep as much open as possible. We just need the Democrats to actually help us out.”

Vice President JD Vance’s comments were the first from the Trump administration after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered strikes in Gaza Tuesday.

“The president achieved a historic peace in the Middle East. The ceasefire is holding,” Vance told reporters on Capitol Hill after he left a meeting with Senate Republicans. “That’s doesn’t mean there aren’t going to be little skirmishes here and there,” he said.

That was the vice president’s message behind closed door at the Senate Republicans’ weekly lunch, on day 28 of the government shutdown.

Senators said the message was well received as the GOP tries to hold the line and Democrats push for healthcare funds.

Lunch was the standard Senate fare of fish, vegetables and dessert.

The administration says it will appeal a ruling that it must release millions of dollars in grants meant to address a shortage of mental health workers in schools.

The Education Department said in a statement Tuesday that it is working with the Justice Department to appeal the Monday ruling by a federal judge in Seattle.

U.S. District Judge Kymberly K. Evanson ruled the administration’s move in April to cancel school mental health grants starting in December 2025 was arbitrary and capricious. The ruling applies only to some grantees in the 16 Democratic-led states that challenged the decision. Congress funded the mental health program after the 2022 school shooting in Uvalde, Texas.

The administration opposed aspects of the grant programs that touched on race, saying they were harmful to students. The department said in its statement Tuesday the grants, which were first awarded under the Biden administration, were used “to promote divisive ideologies based on race and sex.”

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum sharply criticized the strikes on Tuesday, and Mexico’s government said that a rescue operation is underway in search of a survivor of the strike around 400 miles southwest of the Pacific city of Acapulco.

The Mexican Navy said in a statement they were carrying out the operation with an ocean patrol vessel and a maritime patrol aircraft “in compliance” with an international human rights convention “with the aim of safeguarding human life at sea.”

Sheinbaum has asked her foreign affairs secretary and the Navy to meet with the U.S. ambassador in Mexico to discuss the issue because “we do not agree with these attacks.”

“We want all international treaties to be respected,” she said.

Mexican security analyst David Saucedo said Sheinbaum frequently invokes sovereignty saying there will be no American intervention.

“That’s the discourse, the narrative, but in reality Mexico’s government has aligned with the interests of Washington,” he said. “What I see is a total and complete collaboration between the Mexican and American government in this.”

Arriving for a lunch with Senate Republicans, Vice President JD Vance ignored shouted questions from reporters about what could end the shutdown standoff between the parties.

Vance is expected to discuss tariffs during the meeting, ahead of votes on the issue later this week. His visit to the Capitol comes as the shutdown stretches on and Trump remains abroad in Asia.

Nvidia will partner with the Department of Energy to build seven AI-powered supercomputers, its CEO Jensen Huang announced Tuesday in the nation’s capital city.

Huang, speaking at Nvidia’s developer’s conference, said the partnership will help advance the country’s science and technology research.

The United States and China are chief rivals in an economic race that bets on tech innovations as a chief driver of growth. An AI supercomputer can be used to train large and complicated models needed in developing artificial intelligence capabilities.

Democratic officials across the U.S. filed a lawsuit Tuesday seeking to force the Trump administration to replenish benefits in the SNAP food assistance program.

The Department of Agriculture said last week that the debit cards used by beneficiaries won’t be loaded in November due to the government shutdown.

A group of attorneys general and governors for 25 states and the District of Columbia contend in the filing in federal court in Massachusetts that the administration is legally required to use a contingency fund to pay for continuing benefits. They focus on a contingency fund with roughly $5 billion — enough to pay the benefits for more than half a month.

About 1 in 8 Americans use SNAP to help buy groceries. Beneficiaries, food banks and states have been scrambling to figure out how to make sure they’ll have access to food even if the program is paused.

U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis on Tuesday ordered a senior U.S. Border Patrol official to meet with her daily “to hear about how the day went” after weeks of confrontations between immigration agents and the public in the Chicago area. Ellis also asked Greg Bovino to submit by Friday all use of force reports from Border Patrol agents involved in Operation Midway Blitz from Sept. 2 through Tuesday.

The courtroom Tuesday gave the feeling of a principal’s office as Ellis detailed examples of incidents where she felt her previous order restricting use of force, including tear gas, was not being followed.

She spoke intensely about weekend reports that Border Patrol agents disrupted a children’s Halloween parade with tear gas on the city’s Northwest side, saying one of the reasons she called Bovino to court is “so that kids can feel safe walking to the store or walking to school.”

“These kids, you can imagine, their sense of safety was shattered on Saturday,” Ellis said. “And it’s going to take a long time for that to come back, if ever.”

▶ Read more about developments from the court hearing

Democrats insist that before they agree to fund the government, Republicans must agree to extend federal subsidies for health care plans offered through the Affordable Care Act marketplace — otherwise health insurance costs will soar for millions of Americans next year.

The window for enrolling in ACA health plans begins Saturday. In past years, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has allowed Americans to preview their options about a week before open enrollment.

As of Monday, Healthcare.gov appeared to show 2025 health insurance plans and estimated prices, instead of next year’s options. CMS was expected to temporarily bring back all its workers furloughed during the shutdown, in part to manage the ACA open enrollment period.

Twenty-eight senators, mostly Democrats, signed a letter urging Trump’s administration to let ACA enrollees start previewing their options.

American Federation of Government Employees National President Everett Kelley wants lawmakers to vote for closure on H.R. 5371, which would end the federal government shutdown for roughly three weeks.

“As president of the largest federal employee union, I cannot countenance the sight of workers I represent standing in food lines. It should trouble the conscience of every member of Congress and indeed every American,” Kelley said in his letter to lawmakers.

“Whether they are declared excepted workers or are furloughed – a designation they do not choose – federal workers are for the most part not being paid. Yet their obligations remain to pay mortgages and monthly rents, credit card bills and childcare, and gasoline and automobile loans.”

A federal judge in Chicago began her questioning of Bovino on Tuesday by detailing examples of what she called excessive use of force in recent weeks, including during a weekend children’s Halloween parade on Chicago’s Northwest side.

Ellis said she has seen video recordings of agents using force without giving proper warnings to protesters beforehand, and carrying out operations without wearing badges.

Bovino said he has “instructed all agents under my command to place an identifier conspicuously on their uniform.”

Bovino also said that he himself has not received a body worn camera or received the four-hour training for using them.

“I suspect if you asked for one, you could probably get one easily,” the judge told him. She asked him to get a camera and complete the training by Friday.

U.S. President Donald Trump, center, and Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, right, arrive for the Japan-US summit meeting at Akasaka Palace State Guest House in Tokyo, Japan, Tuesday, Oct. 28, 2025. (Franck Robichon/Pool Photo via AP)

U.S. President Donald Trump, center, and Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, right, arrive for the Japan-US summit meeting at Akasaka Palace State Guest House in Tokyo, Japan, Tuesday, Oct. 28, 2025. (Franck Robichon/Pool Photo via AP)

President Donald Trump arrives at Haneda Airport before switching his ride to Marine One in Tokyo, Japan, Monday, Oct. 27, 2025, following his visit at the ASEAN summit in Malaysia. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

President Donald Trump arrives at Haneda Airport before switching his ride to Marine One in Tokyo, Japan, Monday, Oct. 27, 2025, following his visit at the ASEAN summit in Malaysia. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Several Middle Eastern allies of the United States have urged the Trump administration to hold off on strikes against Iran for the government’s deadly crackdown on protesters, according to an Arab diplomat familiar with the matter.

Top officials from Egypt, Oman, Saudi Arabia and Qatar have raised concerns in the last 48 hours that a U.S. military intervention would shake the global economy and destabilize an already volatile region, said the diplomat who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the sensitive conversations.

Oil prices fell Thursday as the markets appeared to take note of President Donald Trump’s shifting tone as a sign that he’s leaning away from attacking Iran after days of launching blistering threats at Tehran for its brutal crackdown.

Nevertheless, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt on Thursday maintained that “all options remain on the table” for Trump as he deals with Iran.

Here's the latest:

The White House and a bipartisan group of governors are pressuring the operator of the mid-Atlantic power grid to take urgent steps to boost energy supply and curb price hikes, holding a Friday event aimed at addressing a rising concern among voters about the enormous amount of power used for artificial intelligence ahead of elections later this year.

The White House said its National Energy Dominance Council and the governors of several states, including Pennsylvania, Ohio and Virginia, want to try to compel PJM Interconnection to hold a power auction for tech companies to bid on contracts to build new power plants.

The Trump administration and governors will sign a statement of principles toward that end Friday.

▶ Read more about the administration and AI-driven power shortages

The Justice Department’s investigation into Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has brought heightened attention to a key drama that will play out at the central bank in the coming months: Will Powell leave the Fed when his term as chair ends, or will he take the unusual step of remaining a governor?

Powell’s term as Fed chair ends May 15, but because of the central bank’s complex structure, he has a separate term as one of seven members of its governing board that lasts until January 31, 2028. Historically, nearly all Fed chairs have stepped down from the board when they’re no longer chair. But Powell could be the first in nearly 50 years to stay on as a governor.

Many Fed-watchers believe the criminal investigation into Powell’s testimony about cost overruns for Fed building renovations was intended to intimidate him out of taking that step. If Powell stays on the board, it would deny the White House a chance to gain a majority, undercutting the Trump administration’s efforts to seize greater control over what has for decades been an institution largely insulated from day-to-day politics.

▶ Read more about Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell

Trump on Thursday announced the outlines of a health care plan he wants Congress to take up as Republicans have faced increasing pressure to address rising health costs after lawmakers let subsidies expire.

The cornerstone is his proposal to send money directly to Americans for health savings accounts so they can handle insurance and health costs as they see fit. Democrats have rejected the idea as a paltry substitute for the tax credits that had helped lower monthly premiums for many people.

Trump’s plan also focuses on lowering drug prices and requiring insurers to be more upfront with the public about costs, revenues, rejected claims and wait times for care.

Trump has long been dogged by his lack of a comprehensive health care plan as he and Republicans have sought to unwind former President Barack Obama’s signature legislation, the Affordable Care Act. Trump was thwarted during his first term in trying to repeal and replace the law.

▶ Read more about Trump’s health care plan

Most American presidents aspire to the kind of greatness that prompts future generations to name important things in their honor.

Donald Trump isn’t leaving it to future generations.

As the first year of his second term wraps up, his Republican administration and allies have put his name on the U.S. Institute of Peace, the Kennedy Center performing arts venue and a new class of battleships.

That’s on top of the “Trump Accounts” for tax-deferred investments, the TrumpRx government website soon to offer direct sales of prescription drugs, the “Trump Gold Card” visa that costs at least $1 million and the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity, a transit corridor included in a deal his administration brokered between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

On Friday, he plans to attend a ceremony in Florida where local officials will dedicate a 4-mile (6-kilometer) stretch of road from the airport to his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach as President Donald J. Trump Boulevard.

▶ Read more about Trump’s renaming efforts

Nearly a year into his second term, Trump’s work on the economy hasn’t lived up to the expectations of many people in his own party, according to a new AP-NORC survey.

The poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research finds a significant gap between the economic leadership Americans remembered from Trump’s first term and what they’ve gotten so far as he creates a stunning level of turmoil at home and abroad.

Just 16% of Republicans say Trump has helped “a lot” in addressing the cost of living, down from 49% in April 2024, when an AP-NORC poll asked Americans the same question about his first term.

At the same time, Republicans are overwhelmingly supportive of the president’s leadership on immigration — even if some don’t like his tactics.

There is little sign overall, though, that the Republican base is abandoning Trump. The vast majority of Republicans, about 8 in 10, approve of his job performance, compared with 4 in 10 for adults overall.

▶ Read more about the poll’s findings

Several Middle Eastern allies of the United States have urged the Trump administration to hold off on strikes against Iran for the government’s deadly crackdown on protesters, according to an Arab diplomat familiar with the matter.

Top officials from Egypt, Oman, Saudi Arabia and Qatar have raised concerns in the last 48 hours that a U.S. military intervention would shake the global economy and destabilize an already volatile region, said the diplomat who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the sensitive conversations.

Oil prices fell on Thursday as the markets appeared to take note of President Donald Trump’s shifting tone as a sign that he’s leaning away from attacking Iran after days of launching blistering threats at Tehran for its brutal crackdown.

Nevertheless, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt on Thursday maintained that “all options remain on the table” for Trump as he deals with Iran.

▶ Read more about Trump and Iran

— Matthew Lee, Aamer Madhani and Ben Finley

President Donald Trump speaks during an event to honor the 2025 Stanley Cup Champion Florida Panthers in the East Room of the White House, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

President Donald Trump speaks during an event to honor the 2025 Stanley Cup Champion Florida Panthers in the East Room of the White House, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

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