President Donald Trump’s efforts to deploy National Guard troops in states that don’t want them will be tested in two different courts Thursday

Chicago has become the ultimate proving ground for President Trump's domestic military experiment, pitting armed federal forces against a Democratic-led city determined to resist them. Why it matters: The arrival of the National Guard — coupled with Trump's calls to arrest Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker — could open a volatile new chapter in American history. --- * Trump officials say the deployment, which relies on 200 National Guard troops from Texas, is meant to protect federal agents conducting immigration operations. Illinois has sued, calling it an illegal occupation. * The troops aren't supposed to engage in actual policing so as not to violate the Posse Comitatus Act of 1878, which generally forbids the military from civilian law enforcement activities. Zoom in: Weeks of raids, protests and violent clashes tied to Immigration and Customs Enforcement's "Operation Midway Blitz" have already put the city on edge. * Homeland Security officials say they're targeting criminal unauthorized migrants, and that incendiary rhetoric by Democratic leaders has led to a surge in violence against ICE officers. * Local leaders say federal agents are exacerbating the situation with their increasingly aggressive tactics, including the use of a Black Hawk helicopter to surround an apartment building. A lawsuit by a coalition of journalists and protesters alleged a "pattern of extreme brutality" outside a local ICE facility, where a video went viral Wednesday of a pastor being shot in the head with a pepper ball. * With National Guard troops now on the ground, the conflict has evolved beyond immigration enforcement into a test of presidential power and state sovereignty. * "This has never happened before," Pritzker told MSNBC. "They're calling out troops onto the streets of a state that doesn't want them and they're not even telling us where they're gonna go, what they're gonna do." The big picture: Chicago's blend of politics, demographics and history has set the stage for an explosive showdown. * A liberal power center: Johnson, the city's Black progressive mayor, has vowed to resist Trump's "authoritarianism" and signed an executive order establishing "ICE-free zones" barring immigration agents from using city property. Pritzker, a potential 2028 presidential candidate, has made opposing Trump and funding liberal causes central to his political brand. Chicago is also the hometown of former President Obama, Trump's first major political foil. * A conservative fixation: For years, Republicans and right-wing media have sought to use Chicago as a poster child for urban violence and Democratic chaos. FBI Director Kash Patel alleged that Chicago has 110,000 gang members, which would amount to nearly 5% of the city's population. * A constitutional stress test: The decision to send Texas National Guard troops into Illinois without the governor's approval sits in a legal gray zone — one that could determine how far presidents can go in deploying force at home. The intrigue: A hearing is set for Thursday in Illinois' lawsuit to block Trump's National Guard deployment. A federal judge's earlier decision to halt a deployment in Portland, Ore., enraged the White House and MAGA activists. * If the courts allow it: The ruling could create a blueprint for deploying the National Guard to Democrat-led cities without a governor's consent — a historic expansion of federal power over states' rights. * If the courts block it: Trump could use the setback as justification to invoke the Insurrection Act, an unprecedented escalation that would empower troops to conduct law enforcement operations on U.S. soil, legally overriding the Posse Comitatus Act. White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller has advocated for that approach, a Trump adviser told Axios' Marc Caputo. * Miller, who referred to the judge's ruling in Portland as a "legal insurrection," said on CNN that the president has "plenary authority" to federalize the National Guard when necessary for public safety. * The Trump adviser told Axios that obstinance by Johnson and Pritzker could accelerate the president's march toward the Insurrection Act, which he's been fixated on since the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests. What they're saying: "Amidst ongoing violent riots and lawlessness, that local leaders like Pritzker and Johnson have refused to step in to quell, President Trump has exercised his lawful authority to protect federal officers and assets," White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson told Axios. * "President Trump will not turn a blind eye to the lawlessness plaguing American cities like these Democrat leaders want to do." The bottom line: Trump's "war from within," as he previewed to more than 800 military commanders last week, is just getting started.

The road to futuristic nuclear power is long and paved with … cancer drugs? The big picture: Several nuclear startups are pursuing profits on offshoot products stemming from scientific innovations — such as ingredients in cancer-treating drugs — to fund long journeys toward profiting on their primary business. --- Why it matters: Building hundreds of nuclear power plants — including advanced fission and yet-to-actually-exist fusion — offers one of the most tantalizing ways to satisfy rapid power demand and combat climate change. * But finding a way to fund their expensive and complicated roads to scaling is essential. Capitalism demands profits far sooner. Driving the news: TerraPower, an advanced nuclear energy company founded nearly 20 years ago, is scaling up production of a key cancer drug ingredient — a medical isotope, or radioactive atoms used for medical diagnoses and treatment. * It made the discovery nine years ago in what initially was a side project. * It's going through drug trials now, with results expected in the next couple of years, said Chris Levesque, TerraPower's CEO, at an Axios event during Climate Week NYC last month. "It's going to be a very lucrative business for us, and of course it fulfills our mission of helping people with nuclear technology," Levesque said. * Proceeds from the isotope sales will "really help us offset some of the investment needed to build those first reactors while we're bringing down the cost curve," Levesque said. * After initially targeting a 2028 start date of its first advanced nuclear reactor in Wyoming, TerraPower has pushed that to 2030 due to fuel shortages. State of play: The offshoot business is even more prevalent in fusion. That's partly because it's a less-tapped innovation space and because its timelines are even longer than advanced fission. * Several fusion startups are pursuing similar side revenue. They include TAE Technologies in power management and life sciences and Commonwealth Fusion Systems with high-temperature superconducting cable tech. Zoom in: SHINE Technologies is among the most explicit in its messaging and strategy. * It's pursuing a four-phase approach, in which the fourth is generating fusion electricity. * Earlier phases make use of products stemming from an application of the fusion reaction that falls short of what's needed for electricity, but is sufficient in other sectors, ranging from medical isotopes to defense. The intrigue: SHINE, which was formally founded in 2010 but whose work dates to 2005, was initially called SHINE Medical Technologies. "Medical" was dropped in 2021 to ease investors' confusion on whether it was primarily a medical company, its CEO, Greg Piefer, told Axios. * "We're a fusion energy company. It feels more authentic to our true self," Piefer said. "We are just selling fusion to higher-paying customers than electricity." By the numbers: Defense-sector customers — including jet engine and rocket manufacturers — pay SHINE as much as $200,000 per kilowatt hour of fusion energy. * Piefer contrasted that with the average rate per kilowatt hour for equivalent heat that hovers around five cents (electricity is closer to 20 cents). Reality check: These companies are — so far, anyway — expanding to include faster profit-making products. * Sometimes, though, such expansions could become permanent pivots. It remains to be seen whether some of these firms move more entirely to these other lines if the primary nuclear business takes too long. * "So far, the majority of our owners really like the energy play and feel this is a differentiated and smart approach to it," Piefer said. "Realities can change, market conditions change, and at some point, it could come to that: 'Alright, this fusion stuff [for electricity] is too hard.' * "But right now, we are making awesome progress on the cost curve." The other side: The promise of fusion, in particular, has been on the horizon for some time. * Former Vice President Al Gore, now a cleantech investor, is warming up to fission energy thanks to its potential role in satisfying AI power demand. But he remains skeptical of fusion. * "Fusion could eventually come online," he told Axios. With subtle sarcasm, Gore continued: "I had my first congressional hearing on fusion 45 years ago, and the experts on the panel said it's 50 years out. So, I'm getting excited." Bottom line: No matter when — or if — advanced fission and fusion power plants are built, other things are already being achieved because of these endeavors. * "As we make a big run at fusion as a society over the next decade, then there's likely to be a whole range of spinouts, many of which we don't understand at this point," said Andrew Holland, head of the four-year-old Fusion Industry Association. * He compared it to the space race that originated civilian innovations from more computing power to new alloys. * "We'll look back and realize how important it was," Holland predicted.

The president has been openly campaigning for the prize, which will be announced this Friday, since his first term. Recent signs of progress in Ukraine and especially Gaza could give him a legitimate claim.

The Trump administration is using public funds for private investments, saying it bolsters U.S. security and access to key resources. Critics see a risk to the economy’s free-market foundations.

The White House isn't just standing by its view that federal law doesn't guarantee back pay for furloughed workers: It has emails showing this belief dates back to the 2019 shutdown, according to correspondence reviewed by Axios. Why it matters: This interpretation from the Trump White House's current Office of Management and Budget has roiled Congress, outraged labor unions and added a layer of tension to the federal shutdown that began Oct. 1. --- * Amid the outcry over the possibility of up to 750,000 furloughed workers being denied back pay, OMB general counsel Mark Paoletta briefed Republican congressional staffers Tuesday about a draft OMB memo, first reported by Axios, concerning the furlough law. * Paoletta discussed the emails between the office and congressional budget staff in 2019 that raised the same points, administration and congressional sources tell Axios. Zoom in: The law in question, the ''Government Employee Fair Treatment Act," or GEFTA, was signed by Trump during the 2019 shutdown, which lasted a record 35 days. * At the time, the White House announced GEFTA "requires the compensation of government employees for wages lost, work performed, or leave used during" a shutdown. * That was the prevailing view until this shutdown began and OMB began to publicly interpret the law in a different way than everyone else. Behind the scenes: Unknown to many, GEFTA was quietly amended nine days after its initial passage to indicate that furloughed workers weren't automatically entitled to back pay, according to the 2019 email correspondence. * That amendment says furloughed workers shall be compensated "subject to the enactment of appropriations Acts" after a shutdown ends. * So Congress has to take the extra step of specifically authorizing the money for the furloughed workers, according to the emails. * The amendment was tucked into the bottom of the joint resolution ending the shutdown that Trump signed on Jan. 25, 2019. What they're saying: Labor leaders and Democrats accuse Trump's administration of flouting the letter and intent of the law as originally signed. * "If OMB chooses thuggish intimidation tactics over following the law, it better prepare to face the American people in court," said Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia, a state with one of the largest shares of federal workers. * Kaine's statement emphasized that he was "proud to work across the aisle in 2019 to pass legislation that President Trump himself signed to guarantee back pay to federal workers in the event of a shutdown." The timeline: The day before Trump signed the original version of the law on Jan. 15, 2019, legislative and executive branch budget staffers began having a quiet, hyper-technical conversation by email about how to estimate the cost and consequences of the legislation. * At 10:17 a.m. Jan. 14, 2019, a Senate staffer wrote OMB with questions about the "ambiguous" legislation (abbreviated as S.24) that needed to be "clearer" because it "appears to create a permanent entitlement" for furloughed workers but had other language that conflicted with that. * "S. 24 does not create an entitlement for furloughed employees," a senior OMB official emailed back at 5:07 p.m. on Jan. 17 , 2019. * "It's preferable if S. 24 were further clarified to make it more explicit that payment to furloughed employees is contingent on future appropriations and eliminate any confusion about the relationship between the newly enacted statute and future appropriations bill[s]," the email continued, foreshadowing OMB's current position. * OMB then proposed the exact amendment language that was grafted into GEFTA shortly afterward to end the 2019 shutdown. What's next: Who knows when the shutdown will end. But there's general bipartisan consensus that the estimated 750,000 furloughed federal workers should get back pay when it's over. * Trump is not explicitly and unconditionally on board, and insiders expect he'll use the threat of withholding pay and firing workers to try to pressure Senate Democrats into agreeing to end the shutdown. * A senior White House official said the administration isn't backing away from OMB's interpretation of the law: "This view was explored, discussed and supported in the first term, and we're continuing to explore, discuss and support that view now."

President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that if Russian leader Vladimir Putin seeks to capture all of eastern Ukraine, his army’s losses in killed personnel would amount to around one million soldiers.

Data: Gallup; Chart: Jacque Schrag/Axios Americans' approval ratings for six major federal agencies — FEMA, CIA, CDC, FDA, EPA and the IRS — have dropped sharply since 2024, according to a Gallup poll released Thursday. The big picture: Many of these agencies sit at or near their lowest approval levels in Gallup's records, which date back to 2003, signaling an overall increase in dissatisfaction toward the U.S. government. --- The intrigue: While Democrats' ratings of most agencies have weakened, Republicans' have mostly improved, echoing partisan shifts seen during President Trump's first term and early in former President Biden's presidency. * Republicans and Republican-leaning voters now give the Department of Defense (74%) and Homeland Security (73%) strong approval ratings, likely reflecting the Trump administration's crackdown on immigration and crime. Yes, but: Homeland Security is the only department Republicans rated more positively compared to the Trump administration in 2019. * Among Democrats and Democrat-leaning voters, only the U.S. Postal Service (66%) and NASA (52%) retain majority positive reviews. * The USPS is the only department whose approval among Democrats hasn't declined since 2024, and the only one to receive majority approval from those surveyed. Reality check: FEMA, the EPA and the CDC had low ratings across party lines, with the steepest overall drops among the agencies since the 2024 poll. * Less than 35% of Americans rated the State Department, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Justice Department, Federal Reserve Board and Department of Veterans Affairs positively. The bottom line: Partisan divides are making it harder for Americans and Congressional leaders to find common ground on the role of the government. Methodology: The nationwide poll was conducted Sept. 2-16, 2025. Telephone interviews were conducted with a random sample of 1,000 adults. The overall margin of sampling error is +/- 4 percentage points.

The Yulin naval complex is a key component of China's military infrastructure in the region.

President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that the Dobropillia counteroffensive operation by the Armed Forces of Ukraine disrupted the Russian summer campaign and is influencing the defense of Pokrovsk.

President Volodymyr Zelensky has stated that Ukraine is already successfully employing the Neptune and Flamingo missiles in tandem.

Russia has warned that NATO shooting down its aircraft would be a serious escalation that could lead to open war.

Ukraine’s rail network, and keeping it running, have been a major source of national pride, economic necessity, humanitarian transport, and a critical lifeline in a war effort that has lasted almost four years. Now Russia is targeting it.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation Wednesday to phase out "the most concerning" ultra-processed foods phased from school meals over the next 10 years, per a statement from the governor's office. Why it matters: California is the first U.S. state to pass such a law and also the first to require that a statutory definition of ultra-processed foods (UPF) be provided. --- * The action comes amid a national call from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his "Make America Healthy Again" movement for Americans to move away from ultra-processed foods. How it works: The law requires require California's Department of Public Health to adopt regulations by June 1, 2028, to define "ultra-processed foods of concern" and "restricted school foods." * Schools must begin to phase out these foods by no later than July 1, 2029, according to the legislation. * Vendors will be banned from offering restricted school foods and ultra-processed foods of concern to schools from July 1, 2032. * Schools will be prohibited from offering these foods from July 1, 2035. Situation report: CDC data out this past summer found American adults and kids over age 1 got more than half of their daily calories from ultra-processed foods like hamburgers, pizza and sweetened drinks between 2021 and 2023. * Newsom's office noted that Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data shows that 32.7% of children and youth ages 12-19 are prediabetic. State of play: The law follows an executive order Newsom signed in January directing state agencies to recommend potential actions to limit the harms associated with ultra-processed foods and food ingredients that pose a health risk to individuals. * In 2023, California became the first state to ban four potentially harmful food additives in a law that takes effect in 2027. Zoom out: Kennedy has made cleaning up the U.S. diet a priority and the Trump administration has committed to a "U.S. government-wide definition" for ultra-processed food. * He has also extracted pledges from companies to swap out single ingredients, though Axios' Maya Goldman reports that critics say this won't make much difference in health. What they're saying: "California is the first state to define ultra-processed foods and phase them out of school meals," Newsom said on X Wednesday. * "DC politicians can talk all day about 'Making America Healthy Again,' but we've been walking the walk on boosting nutrition and removing toxic additives and dyes for decades." * Representatives for the Department of Health and Human Services did not immediately respond to Axios' Wednesday night request for comment. Go deeper: The political lens on food is changing

Colombia President Gustavo Petro accused the U.S. of bombing a Colombian boat "with Colombian citizens inside" as part of its recent campaign of striking alleged drug smugglers off of Venezuela. Why it matters: The Trump administration has conducted a series of deadly strikes in the Caribbean Sea without identifying who it's actually killing, beyond its claim they're all "narco-terrorists." * Democrats have decried the strikes as illegal, and Petro is now claiming the strikes have killed Colombian citizens, alongside others. --- What he's saying: "A new war zone has opened up: the Caribbean," Petro wrote on X Wednesday in reply to a post from Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) about efforts in Congress to block Trump's strikes. * "Evidence shows that the last boat bombed was Colombian, with Colombian citizens inside. I hope their families come forward and file a complaint," Petro continued. * "There is no war on smuggling, there is a war for oil and it must be stopped by the world. The aggression is against all of Latin America and the Caribbean," Petro said, * Petro has not offered any evidence for his claim. The Colombian embassy in Washington and the Pentagon did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Between the lines: Colombia has historically been one of the closest U.S. partners in Latin America, though relations are strained under Petro's leftist administration, which is aligning itself closely with Venezuela's Nicolás Maduro in his current standoff with the U.S. Driving the news: It's unclear whether the "last boat bombed" Petro referred to was one of the four the Pentagon has announced, or an additional strike. In all four known incidents, multiple people were killed. * The White House has not identified any of the individuals involved. Attorney General Pam Bondi declined to say whether her department had provided any advice on the legality of the strikes during a congressional hearing on Tuesday. The big picture: The official rationale for the large U.S. naval presence off of Venezuela is drug interdiction, but President Trump and his team have made clear that they also want to see Maduro — who has a $50 million U.S. bounty on his head — removed from office.

US president’s threat to impose 92% tariffs targeting major manufacturers put family-run firms in the firing line as well “It’s a real pity,” laments Antonio Rummo of Donald Trump’s latest target in his ever-evolving tariff war: Italian pasta. Rummo is the sixth-generation grandson of the founder of Pasta Rummo, who opened a wheat mill in Benevento in southern Italy in 1846, using the family’s three horses to lug grain from the surrounding Campania region and Puglia to produce fresh pasta. “Demand for premium pasta in the US has been growing,” says Rummo. Appreciated by consumers for a traditional processing method that guarantees it will cook to al dente perfection, sales of Pasta Rummo have been thriving. Continue reading...

Relatives of Israeli hostages who are currently residing in Washington DC spoke over the phone with US president Trump, who told them that their loved ones will all return on Monday (October 13). Continue reading...

The total combat losses of Russian troops from February 24, 2022, to October 9, 2025, in the war against Ukraine amount to approximately 1,119,390 people, including 1,020 people over the past day.

The Center for Countering Disinformation (CCD) at the National Security and Defense Council has recorded an intensification of the Russian information campaign aimed at discrediting the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

The vote for New Jersey governor is seen as a bellwether for sentiment on the Trump administration.

Agreement by the two warring parties in Gaza after months of tense negotiations and near-deals brought widespread relief, raising hopes that a war that was sparked by Hamas’ deadly Oct. 7, 2023, attack will finally be brought to a close.

Russia has intensified its campaign of information influence on the US, using artificial intelligence (AI) and an extensive disinformation network.

A federal judge is expected to rule on Thursday on a request from the governor and mayor to block the troop deployment.

The president of Colombia alleged the U.S. military struck a boat carrying Colombian citizens — which the White House vehemently denied.

The Department of Defense plans to enforce new policies that "appear designed to stifle a free press," the Pentagon Press Association said Wednesday. Why it matters: Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has faced weeks of backlash over a Sept. 15 memo restricting engagements alongside new requirements that journalists sign an "express agreement" not to gather any information the department hasn't officially authorized for release, or they risk losing access to Pentagon facilities. --- Zoom in: The press association said in its Wednesday statement that the revised rules shared on Monday would force reporters to sign off on policies that could potentially expose them to prosecution for "simply doing [their] jobs." * Reporters attempting to seek out information not yet available for formal release, even in unclassified instances, would be at risk of losing their credentials for exercising their First Amendment right, PPA wrote. * "The policy conveys an unprecedented message of intimidation to everyone within the DoD, warning against any unapproved interactions with the press and even suggesting it's criminal to speak without express permission — which plainly, it is not," per the PPA's statement. What they're saying: Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said on X Wednesday evening that the Department of Defense "has engaged in good-faith negotiations" with the association, "maintaining open dialogue with its members and accepting many of their suggested edits." * "The only change is an overdue update to our credentialing process, which hasn't been revised in years — if not decades — to align with modern security standards. Such procedures are standard at military establishments worldwide, and the Pentagon is no exception," he added. * "Access to the Pentagon is a privilege, not a right and the Department is not only legally permitted, but morally obligated to impose reasonable regulations on the exercise of that privilege." Read the statement in full, via DocumentCloud: Go deeper: The Pentagon's bunker mentality