Liveblog
Follow the latest news from the Trump administration live here this Tuesday, October 21. We bring you all the latest news about the government shutdown and other issues of interest in current political events in the United States.
Table of Contents
- Follow the latest news from the Trump administration live here this Tuesday, October 21. We bring you all the latest news about the government shutdown and other issues of interest in current political events in the United States.
- The latest news on current politics and the Trump administration:
- Trump-Putin summit paused to discuss Russia’s war in Ukraine
- Concern about high prices is now compounded by fear of not being able to pay for health insurance: survey
- An unexpected demolition at the White House: who will pay for Trump’s luxurious ballroom?
- Reactions to President Petro’s interview with Univision Noticias: his acute tension with Trump is worrying
- The impact of the ruling that allows the deployment of the National Guard in Portland
- The impact of the government shutdown worsens: it entered its fourth week
- “I’m not going to concede, I’m going to demand”: Petro is defiant in an interview with Univision News
- Virginia Giuffre’s memoirs revive the Epstein case
- JD Vance seeks to consolidate the ceasefire in Gaza in Israel
- President Trump prepares a tour in Asia with many unknowns to clear up
- The US and Australia sign a strategic agreement on rare earths
- Judge orders the release of a detained migrant with serious leukemia
- Republican senators will go to the White House in a gesture of unity with Trump in which no progress is expected on the government shutdown issue
Video Petro’s interview with Univision unleashes reactions: criticism and alerts for his tension with Trump
The latest news on current politics and the Trump administration:
- Plans for Presidents Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin to meet in person to discuss Russia’s war in Ukraine have been put on hold, according to a US official.
- With the government shutdown entering its fourth week, Republican senators visit the White House this Tuesday to stage their support for President Donald Trump and their refusal to negotiate Democratic demands.
- Vice President JD Vance arrived in Israel this Tuesday with the mission of consolidating the fragile ceasefire in Gaza, interrupted by the attacks against the Palestinian Strip ordered by the Netanyahu government after accusing Hamas of violating it.
- President Donald Trump and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese signed an important agreement on rare earths with which they seek to counterbalance Chinese hegemony in a key sector for technological development.
- In an interview with Univision Noticias, President Gustavo Petro spoke about his recent controversy with Donald Trump, criticized the military deployment in the Caribbean and denounced that the United States is supposedly seeking to invade Venezuela in an action that would not be related to drug trafficking but rather to oil.
17 minutes ago21 oct – 12:42 PM EDT
Trump-Putin summit paused to discuss Russia’s war in Ukraine
Plans for Presidents Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin to meet in person to discuss Russia’s war in Ukraine have been put on hold, according to a US official.
The summit had been announced last week. It was supposed to be held in Budapest, but no specific date had been scheduled.
The decision to pause it came after a call between the United States Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, and the Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov.
The official asked not to be identified because he was not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Tuesday that there was no sense of urgency for Trump and Putin to meet. He said “serious preparation is needed” before the match takes place.
The uncertainty surrounding this plan illustrates the obstacles the American president faces in trying to end the war launched by Moscow four years ago.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders have accused Putin of buying time to continue his invasion. They also reject any effort to have kyiv cede territory to Russia, as Trump has suggested.
Eight European leaders and senior officials from the bloc said in a joint statement that they plan to press ahead with plans to use billions of dollars in assets frozen to Moscow to help kyiv win the war, despite questions about the legality and consequences that could ensue.
1 hour ago21 oct – 12:15 PM EDT
Concern about high prices is now compounded by fear of not being able to pay for health insurance: survey
Most adults in the United States are worried about rising health care costs, according to a new AP-NORC poll, as they make decisions about health coverage for the next year and a government shutdown keeps future costs in limbo for millions.
About six in 10 Americans are “extremely” or “very” worried about their health costs rising in the next year, according to the poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, a concern that spans different ages and people with and without health insurance.
Many Americans also have other health care concerns. The survey found that about four in 10 Americans are “extremely” or “very” worried about not being able to pay for the health care or medications they need, not being able to access health care when they need it, or losing or not having health insurance.
Medicare beneficiaries are already looking for coverage for next year, and open enrollment periods for many other health plans are approaching in November.
Federal policies have left millions of people at risk of skyrocketing premiums or losing their health insurance altogether.
The findings show that many Americans feel vulnerable to rising health care costs, with some expressing concerns about whether they will have coverage at all.
1 hour ago21 oct – 11:50 AM EDT
An unexpected demolition at the White House: who will pay for Trump’s luxurious ballroom?
The demolition has already begun. Parts of the East Wing of the White House are being torn down to build a ballroom for President Donald Trump that is estimated to cost about $250 million and is being built amid federal cuts and a prolonged government shutdown.
“I am pleased to announce that work has already begun on the White House gardens to build the new and majestic White House Ballroom,” the president wrote Monday in a post on his social network Truth Social.
Trump had promised that construction of the great hall would not “interfere” with the existing building. “It will be close, but not touching it, and will fully respect the existing structure, of which I am its biggest admirer,” he had said in July.
However, between the fences with which they have surrounded the place, a backhoe could be seen on Monday destroying the structure of the East Wing. A White House official confirmed on condition of anonymity to The Washington Post that demolition work had begun and that other parts of the project, such as the preservation of objects of historical value, the preparation of the land, the felling of trees, had been underway for several weeks.
2 hours ago21 oct – 11:24 AM EDT
Reactions to President Petro’s interview with Univision Noticias: his acute tension with Trump is worrying
The interview of the president of Colombia Gustavo Petro with Daniel Coronell, president of Noticias Univision, has provoked reactions. The former Colombian ambassador in Washington, Juan Carlos Pinzón, assures that Petro’s statements “could end up in a problem of more insecurity for Colombians, but, even more serious, in a problem of millions of lost jobs.”
Video Petro’s interview with Univision unleashes reactions: criticism and alerts for his tension with Trump
2 hours ago21 oct – 11:22 AM EDT
The impact of the ruling that allows the deployment of the National Guard in Portland
An appeals court gave the green light for the deployment of the National Guard in Portland, Oregon. In this regard, Enrique Espinoza, immigration lawyer, talks about the court’s arguments for making this decision and the possible implications.
Video Appeals court rules in favor of National Guard deployment in Portland: implications
2 hours ago21 oct – 10:56 AM EDT
The impact of the government shutdown worsens: it entered its fourth week
The impact of the partial federal government shutdown is worsening as the impasse over approving new funding in Congress entered its fourth week on Tuesday.
Federal workers will once again be left without paychecks, amid uncertainty as to when the impasse between Democrats and Republicans will be resolved.
And key services and aid such as SNAP food stamps are on the line in November. Also payments for aid from the WIC program that provides food to low-income mothers and children and funds from Head Start child care programs.
Additionally, the Federal Aviation Administration has said it faces a growing shortage of air traffic controllers and warned of more flight delays across the United States.
3 hours ago21 oct – 10:02 AM EDT
“I’m not going to concede, I’m going to demand”: Petro is defiant in an interview with Univision News
The president of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, was this Monday defiant of giving in to concessions in the dialogues and negotiations with the United States aimed at trying to resolve the serious diplomatic crisis open between both governments.
“I’m not going to concede, I’m going to demand. Colombia has already conceded everything, it doesn’t have to concede more,” said the president during an exclusive interview at the Casa de Nariño in Bogotá with the president of Univision Noticias, Daniel Coronell.
Petro “drug leader” and will announce that he will reduce aid to the South American country and impose new tariffs.
3 hours ago21 oct – 10:01 AM EDT
Virginia Giuffre’s memoirs revive the Epstein case
The posthumous memoirs of American Virginia Giuffre, one of the most prominent victims in the case of sex criminal Jeffrey Epstein, went on sale this Tuesday.
The launch of the book ‘Nobody’s Girl’ by Giuffre, who died last April in Australia at 41, tells in the book that she was used as a sex slave by Epstein and reveals that she had relations on three occasions with Prince Andrew of England.
Although Donald Trump’s name appears little in the book, its publication may reignite speculation about his relationships with Epstein, with whom he seemed to have a good relationship for many years.
In the book, Giuffre says that her father introduced her to Trump, and that the now US president asked her if she babysat. “Soon I was making money a few nights a week, taking care of the children of the elite,” says Giuffre, according to an excerpt published by Vanity Fair quoted by AFP.
3 hours ago21 oct – 09:57 AM EDT
JD Vance seeks to consolidate the ceasefire in Gaza in Israel
Vice President JD Vance arrived in Israel on Tuesday with the mission of consolidating the fragile ceasefire agreement in Gaza, after President Donald Trump warned Hamas that it would be annihilated if it violated the truce.
Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, and his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, were already in Tel Aviv, where they met with Israeli hostages freed by Hamas after two years of captivity in Gaza.
Vance plans to meet with Witkoff, Kushner and US military experts overseeing the truce. According to Israeli media reports, he will meet with Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, on Wednesday in Jerusalem.
After Israel said Hamas killed two soldiers on Sunday and accused the group of delaying the handover of the hostages’ bodies, it unleashed a new wave of military attacks on the territory, later saying it had “resumed implementation” of the ceasefire.
3 hours ago21 oct – 09:56 AM EDT
President Trump prepares a tour in Asia with many unknowns to clear up
President Donald Trump is preparing for a major trip to Asia to address international trade tensions and a possible meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, a meeting whose outcome could impact the global economy.
Trump’s strategy has been unpredictable, with mixed results in various global conflicts, and the White House has not revealed his full agenda, but he plans to visit Malaysia, Japan and South Korea.
The meeting with Xi is not yet confirmed and trade tensions are high. Trump has expressed optimism about reaching a trade deal, but uncertainties remain about his approach and the results of his meetings.
3 hours ago21 oct – 09:56 AM EDT
The US and Australia sign a strategic agreement on rare earths
President Donald Trump and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese signed an important agreement on rare earths with which they seek to counterbalance Chinese hegemony in a key sector for technological development.
3 hours ago21 oct – 09:56 AM EDT
Judge orders the release of a detained migrant with serious leukemia
José Contreras Cervantes, an immigrant facing possible deportation while dealing with severe leukemia, should be released or at least have a bond hearing in immigration court, a federal judge said.
“Without first assessing each applicant’s flight risk or dangerousness, their detention constitutes a violation of their right to due process under federal law,” U.S. District Judge Brandy McMillion declared Friday.
Contreras, 33, was diagnosed last year with chronic myeloid leukemia, a life-threatening bone marrow cancer, and was told he only has four to six years to live, according to his wife, Lupita Contreras, a U.S. citizen.
Judge McMillion’s decision is a victory for Contreras and seven other plaintiffs represented by the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan. If they are released on bond from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody, they could return to their families while their cases are resolved in immigration court.
The Trump administration has denied bond hearings for immigrants who entered the United States illegally, even if they have no criminal record. This policy reverses previous practices and has been successfully challenged, including recently in Washington state.
3 hours ago21 oct – 09:54 AM EDT
Republican senators will go to the White House in a gesture of unity with Trump in which no progress is expected on the government shutdown issue
As the government shutdown enters its fourth week, Senate Republicans will visit the White House on Tuesday, although not for urgent talks on how to reopen the federal administration but to show their support for President Donald Trump and their refusal to negotiate any Democratic demands.
On Monday, the motion with which Republicans seek to reopen the government for the eleventh time failed, with Democrats insisting on their demand to extend aid to health insurance purchased through ‘Obamacare’.
With no signs of progress in the stalemate, there is no clear way out of the government shutdown that has thousands of federal employees on the verge of not being able to collect their salaries and causing serious delays at airports, in addition to states warning that key social programs will soon expire completely.
“I think the president is ready to engage in the discussion about extending the subsidies,” Senate Republican Leader John Thune, R-South Dakota, said Monday. “But I don’t think they’re prepared to do that until the Democrats open the government.”
A Politico report noted that, behind closed doors, Republican leaders are evaluating ways to extend in some way the improvement to a tax credit that helps pay for health insurance through ‘Obamacare’.
Some of the possible avenues, according to Politico, would be to set income limits so that people receive help to pay for their premiums and maintain the subsidy for people who already receive it, without including more beneficiaries in the future.
Any point that Republicans agree on would then have to be negotiated with Democrats, who have so far been adamant that the current subsidy should be extended as is beyond the end of 2025.
Video Petro’s interview with Univision unleashes reactions: criticism and alerts for his tension with Trump
