Day 1766: "Ignored."

1/ Trump accused six Democratic lawmakers of “seditious behavior” and said their actions were “punishable by DEATH” after they released a video reminding service members they must refuse illegal orders. Trump reposted one message calling for the Democrats to be hanged and asked whether they should be “LOCKED UP,” saying their words “cannot be allowed to stand.” While the lawmakers didn’t cite any specific illegal order from Trump, they noted rising concerns among troops about the legality of some recent military actions, and said they were restating long-standing rules on unlawful commands. House Democratic leaders contacted Capitol Police about safety and urged Republicans to denounce Trump’s posts, while some Republicans lawmakers rejected his reference to executions but criticized the Democrats’ video. (New York Times / Politico / NBC News / Bloomberg / Wall Street Journal / Washington Post / Axios / CNN / NPR / Associated Press / ABC News)

2/ A federal judge ruled that Trump’s deployment of more than 2,000 National Guard troops in Washington was likely unlawful and ordered the operation to end, but delayed the order for 21 days so the administration can appeal. Judge Jia Cobb found that the White House used the D.C. National Guard for crime-deterrence missions without a request from the city and brought in out-of-state troops without legal authority, which she said harmed the District’s ability to govern itself. The deployment began in August after Trump declared a crime emergency and later extended the Guard mission into 2026. D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb said the ruling confirms that “the U.S. military should not be policing American citizens on American soil.” The White House, meanwhile, claimed Trump acted within his lawful power. (Associated Press / CNN / New York Times / Bloomberg / Washington Post)

3/ The FBI opened a grand jury investigation into whether the Justice Department relied on unauthorized, outside people in its mortgage fraud investigations of Sen. Adam Schiff and New York Attorney General Letitia James. Investigators issued subpoenas seeking records of any contacts witnesses had with people claiming to work for or take direction from Martin or Pulte, including individuals who may have posed as federal investigators or viewed grand jury material without permission. Christine Bish, a Republican activist who promoted the allegations against Schiff, said agents asked her mostly about those contacts instead of her claims about the senator. Investigators are reviewing whether Robert Bowes, Scott Strauss, or others improperly gathered or shared sensitive investigative material. Schiff and James have denied the allegations. (CNN / MS NOW / ABC News / NBC News / Axios / Associated Press / New York Times)

4/ The House voted 426-0 to repeal a new law that lets senators sue the federal government for at least $500,000 if their phone records were obtained without prior notice. The provision, written by Senate Majority Leader John Thune and added to the shutdown-ending bill, allowed eight Republican senators to file retroactive claims after former special counsel Jack Smith legally obtained their call log data through grand jury subpoenas during his 2020 election investigation. Thune said the measure was meant to create accountability, while Speaker Mike Johnson said he was blindsided and “very angry” it was included. While some senators covered by the provision said they wouldn’t sue, Lindsey Graham said he plans to seek far more than the minimum and wants the right to sue others expanded. The Senate, meanwhile, hasn’t said whether it will take up the House repeal, leaving the future of the provision uncertain. (Politico / Bloomberg / CNN / Wall Street Journal / The Hill)

5/ Trump signed the Epstein Files Transparency Act, ordering the Justice Department to release within 30 days all unclassified records, communications and investigative materials related to Jeffrey Epstein. The law requires the files to be posted in a searchable, downloadable format and allows redactions only for victim-identifying information, classified material, images of child sexual abuse and items that could jeopardize active federal investigations. Trump had opposed the effort for months and called it a Democratic “hoax” before reversing course right before Congress passed the bill with near-unanimous support. (Associated Press / Axios / Politico / New York Times / Wall Street Journal / NBC News / Bloomberg)

6/ The CDC reversed its longstanding position that vaccines do not cause autism, calling that claim “not an evidence-based claim” despite decades of settled research. The CDC website now claims that studies suggesting a link “have been ignored by health authorities,” even though large reviews of hundreds of thousands of children have found no association between childhood vaccines and autism. Researchers attribute rising autism diagnoses mainly to broader criteria and increased screening. Career CDC scientists said they weren’t consulted, and former senior officials warned the change shows political appointees overruling scientific review. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has questioned vaccine safety for years, replaced the CDC advisory panel earlier this year with vaccine skeptics while also pressing them to revisit major studies that showed no link between vaccines and autism. Sen. Bill Cassidy, who supported Kennedy’s confirmation after receiving assurances that CDC language rejecting a link would remain, denounced the revision and said childhood vaccines “will not cause autism.” (Washington Post / New York Times / Associated Press / Bloomberg / NBC News / Wall Street Journal)

7/ The delayed September jobs report showed a mixed economy, with employers adding 119,000 jobs even as the unemployment rate rose to 4.4% – its fourth straight monthly increase. Revisions to earlier data confirmed that the summer was weaker than first reported, with July and August payrolls cut by a combined 33,000 jobs and August flipping from modest growth to a loss of 4,000 jobs. Key sectors continued to struggle, including manufacturing, transportation and warehousing, and temporary help, while continuing jobless claims rose to 1.974 million and long-term unemployment held at 1.8 million. Federal employment fell by 3,000 in September and is down 97,000 since January. Wages, meanwhile, rose 3.8% over the past year, but only slightly above September’s 3% inflation rate, leaving workers with limited real gains. (NPR / NBC News / Bloomberg / Wall Street Journal / CNBC / New York Times)

poll/ 76% of voters rated the economy as poor, 60% rated their personal finances as not so good, and 46% said they’ve been personally hurt by the Trump’s economic policies. 85% said their grocery costs rose this year, including 60% who said prices rose a lot. A majority of voters also reported higher costs for utilities, health care, housing, and gasoline. 62% said Trump is responsible for the current economic conditions, while 32% blamed Biden. (Fox News)

⏭️ Notably Next: The 2026 midterms are in 348 days.

✏️ Notables.

• Trump plans to open about 1.3 billion acres of U.S. coastal waters to new offshore drilling, including six lease sales off California and more than 20 off Alaska. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said the plan would keep “America’s offshore industry” strong, while Gov. Gavin Newsom called it “dead on arrival” and Sen. Rick Scott urged that Florida’s coasts stay “off the table for oil drilling.” (Washington Post / New York Times)

• The U.S. Coast Guard adopted a new policy that reclassifies swastikas, nooses and similar imagery as “potentially divisive” rather than hate symbols. Acting Commandant Adm. Kevin Lunday said such symbols “will be thoroughly investigated and severely punished,” while Sen. Jacky Rosen warned the changes “could allow for horrifically hateful symbols” to be displayed. A Coast Guard official who reviewed the policy called the shift “chilling,” citing new limits on reporting incidents at sea. (Washington Post)

• A task force appointed by Trump recommended keeping FEMA intact despite Trump’s earlier claim that the agency should “go away.” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is weighing edits to the draft report, which calls for reforming but preserving FEMA, even as she faces pushback over her own ideas to scale back the agency and cut its disaster cost share. (Washington Post / New York Times)

• A Democratic congresswoman from Florida was indicted on charges that she stole $5 million in FEMA disaster funds and used “a substantial portion” to finance her 2021 House campaign. Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick stepped down from a House Foreign Affairs subcommittee leadership post as Attorney General Pam Bondi called the alleged scheme “a particularly selfish, cynical crime,” and Rep. Greg Steube vowed to force an expulsion vote if she didn’t resign. Cherfilus-McCormick called the indictment “an unjust, baseless, sham” and insisted “I am innocent.” (Associated Press / Politico / NBC News / New York Times)

• A New Jersey man pardoned by Trump in 2021 was sentenced to 37 years in prison for running a $44 million Ponzi scheme. Judge Michael Shipp said Eliyahu Weinstein “squandered this coveted gift” by defrauding investors “just months” after his release, and prosecutors sought an unusually long sentence, noting he stole roughly a quarter-billion dollars across two schemes. Weinstein, who once called himself “the Ponzi guy,” is among several Trump pardon recipients charged with new crimes. (New York Times)

• A man pardoned by Trump for storming the Capitol was arrested on charges that he molested two children and tried to silence one victim by promising a nonexistent $10 million Jan. 6 payout. Florida investigators said Andrew Paul Johnson told the child he’d been “pardoned” and would put the victim in his “will,” a tactic deputies said was meant to keep the abuse hidden. Johnson pleaded not guilty and is due in court Dec. 10. (The Intercept / NBC News)

• The White House intervened after border agents seized electronic devices from Andrew Tate, an online influencer accused of sex trafficking, and his brother. Paul Ingrassia, Trump’s Homeland Security liaison and a former Tate lawyer, pushed DHS to return the devices, which officials called “brazenness” that could disrupt a federal investigation. Notably, Ingrassia’s nomination to lead the Office of Special Counsel collapsed after racist texts he’d sent were revealed publicly. (ProPublica)

• Trump and JD Vance weren’t invited to Dick Cheney’s funeral, while former Presidents George W. Bush and Joe Biden and all living former vice presidents attended the invitation-only service. Bush eulogized Cheney as “solid and rare and reliable” whose “talent and restraint” exceeded his ego, and Liz Cheney said “bonds of party must always yield to the single bond we share as Americans.” (CNN / Axios / New York Times / The Guardian / Associated Press)