Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Aman Batheja @amanbatheja.bsky.social · 13m

"Any RIF notices issued in the coming days will likely come with a 60-day notice period before employees are actually terminated. While admin. officials have suggested the layoffs represent a permanent action, OMB has advised agencies they may revise their layoff plans" after the shutdown.

‘Substantial’ layoffs begin at federal agencies, White House says

The Trump administration is following through on its threat to leverage the shutdown to implement federal workforce reductions.

www.govexec.com

Aman Batheja @amanbatheja.bsky.social · 3h

“Thousands of U.S.-bound packages shipped by UPS are trapped at hubs across the country, unable to clear the maze of new customs requirements imposed by the Trump administration…the company told NBC News it has begun ‘disposing of’ some shipments.”

UPS is 'disposing of' U.S.-bound packages over customs paperwork problems

Shifting Trump tariffs have created a nightmare for UPS, as thousands of packages from overseas pile up at its hubs while they await customs clearance.

www.nbcnews.com

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Aman Batheja @amanbatheja.bsky.social · 5h

New: The National Zoo’s Giant Panda Cam will go dark on Sunday. The federal workers who operate it are about to be furloughed.

time.com/7324850/smit...

All Smithsonian Museums to Close Sunday as Shutdown Drags On

The National Zoo's popular Giant Panda Cam will stay turned off until the shutdown is over.

time.com

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Aman Batheja @amanbatheja.bsky.social · 7h

time.com/7324832/trum...

Trump Loses Nobel Peace Prize He Shamelessly Campaigned For

The Norwegian Nobel Committee on Friday said the recognition would instead go to Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado.

time.com

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Aman Batheja @amanbatheja.bsky.social · 1d

Jeff Bezos' Washington Post: "I tracked Amazon’s Prime Day prices. We’ve been played."

"I found products listed as Prime Day discounts that cost the same as I’d paid less than a month earlier."
www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2...

Column | I tracked Amazon’s Prime Day prices. We’ve been played.

Here’s what you should do to actually get a good deal on Amazon.

www.washingtonpost.com

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Aman Batheja @amanbatheja.bsky.social · 1d

That wasn't him

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Aman Batheja @amanbatheja.bsky.social · 1d

CNN: Retired Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy predicts his landmark opinion legalizing same-sex marriage won’t be overturned
www.cnn.com/2025/10/09/p...

Justice Anthony Kennedy predicts his opinion legalizing same-sex marriage won’t be overturned | CNN Politics

The current court majority has shown no collective interest in discarding the decade-old landmark. And Kennedy stressed his belief in a core judicial principle of adherence to precedent, known by the ...

www.cnn.com

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Aman Batheja @amanbatheja.bsky.social · 1d

As the shutdown continues, all of the Smithsonian museums and the National Zoo are about to run out of funding, They're all set to close to visitors starting this Sunday—in the middle of a holiday weekend—and won't reopen until the government does.

Screenshot of top of Smithsonian's homepage: "Our museums, research centers, and the National Zoo are open today and will remain open through Saturday, October 11. If the government shutdown continues past October 11, Smithsonian locations will be closed starting Sunday, October 12."

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Aman Batheja @amanbatheja.bsky.social · 1d

“Most federal employees got their last paycheck in the final hours before the shutdown. Their next check—covering pre-shutdown work—should still arrive…But some could miss pay as soon as Friday. Military members are eyeing Oct. 15, when their next paycheck could be in limbo.”

Washington Can’t Even Agree If The Two Sides Are Talking About the Shutdown

Washington is paralyzed by a deepening partisan shutdown, with Trump and Congress trading blame as 750,000 federal workers face growing financial strain.

time.com

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Prem Thakker ツ @premthakker.bsky.social · 1d

NOTE: Leavitt says Trump will "stop by for his routine yearly check up."

But…Trump had his annual check up already. 5 months ago. On April 11.

Prem Thakker ツ @premthakker.bsky.social · 1d

New — White House says Donald Trump will visit Walter Reed Medical Center on Friday.

"On Friday morning, President Trump will visit Walter Reed Medical Center for a planned meeting and remarks with the troops. While there, President Trump will stop by for his routine yearly check up. He will then return to the White House. President Trump is considering going to the Middle East shortly thereafter." - White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt

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Aman Batheja @amanbatheja.bsky.social · 1d

New: “A growing chorus of Trump allies is urging the President to defy federal court orders, pushing the country toward a direct confrontation between the Executive Branch and the Judiciary—the very outcome the Constitution was designed to prevent.”
time.com/7324353/trum...

Calls Grow on the Right for Trump To Ignore Judges’ Orders

Stephen Miller called a judge’s decision to temporarily block the Portland troop deployment “legal insurrection.”

time.com

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Aman Batheja @amanbatheja.bsky.social · 5d

Looking through old photos and came across a piece of movie trivia I enjoyed so much I took a photo of it (Years later, I still think it’s fun trivia)

THE 2015 JAMES BOND MOVIE SPECTRE OPENS WITH A CHASE SCENE THROUGH A SPECTACULAR DÍA DE LOS MUERTOS PARADE IN MEXICO CITY. THE NEXT YEAR MEXICO CITY THREW ITS FIRST EVER DÍA DE LOS MUERTOS PARADE.

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Reposted by Aman Batheja

Aman Batheja @amanbatheja.bsky.social · 7d

New: Trump’s Promised Shutdown Layoffs Could Be Stuck in Court for Months

"Trump officials have been warned internally that permanent firings during the shutdown could be effectively challenged as violations of appropriations law, according to a senior government official."
time.com/7322826/trum...

Trump’s Shutdown Layoffs Could Be Stuck in Court for Months

Trump officials have been warned internally that the layoffs could be effectively challenged in court, a senior official said

time.com

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Reposted by Aman Batheja

Justin Wolfers @justinwolfers.bsky.social · 7d

Boom!

September jobs numbers: Payrolls rose/fell __k. Unemployment up/down a tick to 4-point-something percent.

Economic data are noisy, yet they still confirm my priors.

Markets are responding exactly as I thought they would.

Another tough moment for the Fed. #JobsReport

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Aman Batheja @amanbatheja.bsky.social · 7d

New: Trump’s Promised Shutdown Layoffs Could Be Stuck in Court for Months

"Trump officials have been warned internally that permanent firings during the shutdown could be effectively challenged as violations of appropriations law, according to a senior government official."
time.com/7322826/trum...

Trump’s Shutdown Layoffs Could Be Stuck in Court for Months

Trump officials have been warned internally that the layoffs could be effectively challenged in court, a senior official said

time.com

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Aman Batheja @amanbatheja.bsky.social · 8d

“Rather logically, Goose came before Geese…Neither should be confused with the Atlanta nu-metal band Silly Goose.”

Goose Is a Jam Band. Geese Is Indie Rock. They Both Have New Albums.

www.nytimes.com

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Aman Batheja @amanbatheja.bsky.social · 8d

“Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, in a notable break with the Dept. of Justice, claimed late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein was ‘the greatest blackmailer ever’ — and may have traded the feds video of his rich…associates getting massages from young women in exchange for a controversial 2008 plea deal.”

Exclusive | Howard Lutnick tells ‘Pod Force One’ ex-neighbor Jeffrey Epstein showed off massage room, made creepy comment during townhouse tour

“This guy was the greatest blackmailer ever. … That’s how he had money,” Lutnick said on the latest episode of “Pod Force One,” out Wednesday.

nypost.com

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Reposted by Aman Batheja

Aman Batheja @amanbatheja.bsky.social · 8d

New: Who the Trump Administration Says Is ‘Essential’ in a Shutdown Is Raising Eyebrows
time.com/7322462/gove...

Around Washington, some are speculating that workers are being deemed essential to protect them from layoffs, according to conversations with Hill staffers and other federal workers

Who Trump Admin. Deems Essential in Shutdown Raises Eyebrows

Amid threats of layoffs, the number of federal workers who haven’t yet found themselves furloughed is fueling theories

time.com

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Aman Batheja @amanbatheja.bsky.social · 8d

New: Who the Trump Administration Says Is ‘Essential’ in a Shutdown Is Raising Eyebrows
time.com/7322462/gove...

Around Washington, some are speculating that workers are being deemed essential to protect them from layoffs, according to conversations with Hill staffers and other federal workers

Who Trump Admin. Deems Essential in Shutdown Raises Eyebrows

Amid threats of layoffs, the number of federal workers who haven’t yet found themselves furloughed is fueling theories

time.com

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Aman Batheja @amanbatheja.bsky.social · 9d

AP: A huddle on the Senate floor "has been spurred by Sen. Mike Rounds, a South Dakota Republican, who has floated an idea to extend tax credits for Affordable Care Act health plans for one year.

The huddle has grown to nearly a dozen senators."
apnews.com/live/donald-...

Live updates: Democrats insist upon health care demands as government shutdown begins

The U.S. is confronting a fresh cycle of uncertainty after President Donald Trump and Congress failed to strike a deal to keep government programs and services open.

apnews.com

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Aman Batheja @amanbatheja.bsky.social · 9d

Excellent @maustermuhle.bsky.social look at how Washington, D.C. is impacted by a shutdown. Did not know this history about why shutdowns used to be much harder on the District
51st.news/the-federal-...

Now, D.C.’s government remaining open isn’t something that’s always happened. During federal shutdowns in the mid-1990s, D.C.’s government was forced to close, denying residents basic services like trash pickup and access to libraries. The city also had to furlough 13,000 of its workers – but not the ones who wrote parking tickets, of course. (For real.)

This was because while the city operates largely independently of the federal government, its budget is still somewhat tethered to the federal government’s. That only changed after the 2013 federal government shutdown (which lasted 16 days), when D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton worked a provision into federal budget bills that exempts D.C. from any federal shutdowns.

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Drew Harwell @drewharwell.com · 9d

I spent some time with OpenAI's new AI video app Sora. Not just slop but ragebait, fake crimes and women splattered with white goo. The implications of all of this are horrifying.

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Reposted by Aman Batheja

Mark Joseph Stern @mjsdc.bsky.social · 9d

NEW: The Supreme Court *refuses* to let Trump fire the Fed's Lisa Cook—for now. Instead, the court agrees to hear the case in January. Cook may continue to serve in the meantime.

(ORDER LIST: 606 U.S.)

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2025

ORDER IN PENDING CASE

25A312 TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF U.S., ET AL. V. COOK, LISA D.

The application for stay presented to The Chief Justice and
by him referred to the Court is deferred pending oral argument in
January 2026. The Clerk is directed to establish a briefing
schedule for amici curiae and any supplemental briefs responding
to amici.

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Aman Batheja @amanbatheja.bsky.social · 9d

This news has nothing to do with the shutdown: "More than 150,000 federal employees will leave the U.S. government payroll this week after accepting buyouts - the largest single-year exodus of civil servants in nearly 80 years"
www.reuters.com/legal/litiga...

US government faces brain drain as 154,000 federal workers exit this week

More than 150,000 federal employees will leave the U.S. government payroll this week after accepting buyouts - the largest single-year exodus of civil servants in nearly 80 years, triggering what unions and governance experts warn is a damaging loss of institutional expertise.

www.reuters.com

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Aman Batheja @amanbatheja.bsky.social · 9d

“All told, agencies plan to furlough around 547,000 employees, while around 1.57 million would continue working. The Congressional Budget Office on Tuesday estimated around 750,000 employees would be furloughed, though that appeared to rely on outdated shutdown plans.”

Just 23% of fed workers would be furloughed if the government shuts down, under the Trump administration’s plan

Several agencies plan to keep more employees working than usual, leading to fewer workers being sent home.

www.govexec.com

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