News On Tap For Tuesday, October 21, 2025

Trump’s Halfascism Keeps Rolling On

Today’s “News On Tap” is full of Trump’s halfascism, unfortunately. From shutdown news where Republicans are starting to fold, to Trump’s wars on cites, immigrants, and even the White House itself. Trump’s MAGA Republicans are showing who the are, even as they wage half-assed lawfare on Trump’s critics. There’s some mixed election news, and some entertainment news too. Plus, actor, musician, and director extraordinary Tim Russ will join us at the bar tonight! No time for clips today -so read up and get informed!

First Round - The Trump/Republican Shutdown Drags On

• Govt. Shutdown Effect Now Rippling Beyond Missing Paychecks To Federal Services That Support Much Of The Economy

• Senate To Vote On Immediately Paying Feds Working During Shutdown As Funding Deal Remains Elusive

• Some Republicans Now Floating Longer Stopgap Bill As Shutdown Enters Fourth Week

• Republican House Leaders Starting To Map Out Potential ACA Subsidies Extension As Hard-Liners Begin To Warm To Health Care Talks

Second Round - Trump’s Wars On America

War On Cities

• Three Judge Federal Appeals Court Panel - Including Two Trump Judges - Says Trump Can Take Command Of Oregon Troops, Though Like Chicago, Deployment Is Blocked For Now

• Judge On Ninth Circuit Court Of Appeals Formally Requests En Banc Rehearing Of 29 Judges In Trump Request To Send Troops To Portland

• Illinois Asks Supreme Court To Deny Trump’s ‘Dramatic’ Request To Bypass Lower Courts & Allow National Guard Deployment

Immigration Wars

• Trump Regime’s Plan To Double The Size Of The ICE Workforce Has Met Its Match - The ICE Personal-Fitness Test [Gift Link]

• Trump Regime Scrambling To Find Country To Take Abrego Garcia Before Judge Orders His Release

Trump’s War On History

• Trump Regime Begins Demolishing Part Of The East Wing Of The White House To Build Trump’s Ballroom

• Trump’s Treasury Dept. Tells Employees Not To Share Photos Of White House Ballroom Construction

• Who Let Trump Destroy Our White House? This Guy. - Demolition For New White House Ballroom Doesn’t Need Approval, Trump-Appointed Commission Head Says

Third Round - The Corruption Never Ends

When They Show You Who They Are

• Extremely Racist Text Found From Key Trump Nominee That Says MLK Jr. Holiday Belongs In ‘Hell’, As Nominee Also Admits He Has A ‘Nazi Streak,’

• Senate Republicans Still Set For Hearing With Trump Nominee Ingrassia After Offensive Texts Found

• Another Trump Nominee “Indefinitely” Stalled By Criminal Probe Linked To Florida Gov. Desantis

• Pardoned Jan. 6 Capitol Insurrectionist Charged With Threatening To Kill Hakeem Jeffries At NYC Event This Week

Trump’s Corrupt Lawfare

• Comey Seeks To Have Indictment By Halligan Tossed, Arguing Charges Were Driven By Trump’s “Personal Animus”

• Joyce Vance: Comey Moves To Dismiss

• Anna Bower: Lindsey Halligan Doesn’t Appear To Know The Rules Regarding Communications With Journalists. Yet She’s Trying A Case Against Jim Comey For That Offense.

• Appeals Court Appears Skeptical Of Trump Admin’s Maneuvers To Keep Alina Habba In Her Job As DOJ Prosecutor In NJ

Fourth Round - More News To Drink About

Election Land

• North Carolina Republicans Advance New Congressional Map In Blatant Attempt To Steal Another U.S. House Seat

• Data Analyst Harry Enten Confirms ‘Eye-Popping’ Shift In Key Metric Looks Disastrous For Trump & Republicans

• Alex Shepard: Mamdani & MTG Get It. Trump & Schumer Do Not. “It” Is Affordability - And It’s What Voters Are Demanding Now

Foreign Affairs

• Israel-Gaza Live Update: JD Vance Arrives In Israel, Claims Ceasefire ‘In Very Good Place,’ Despite Ongoing Violence

• EU Closes In On Deal To Use Russian Frozen Assets To Fund Ukraine

• Ecuador Says It Has No Evidence That Survivor Of A U.S. Military Strike In The Caribbean Committed Any Crime

Fifth Round - Media, Entertainment, & More

• Warner Bros Discovery Now Openly Exploring Sale Of Media Assets, As Potential Buyers Show Interest

• HBO Max Raising Prices Across All Plans Effective Immediately

• Broadway Musicians Say They Will Strike “Immediately” If Deal Is Not Reached Wednesday

• Toronto Blue Jays Advance To World Series For The First Time In 32 Years, Will Face Los Angeles Dodgers

• NWSL Playoff Race Heating Up With Only Two Weeks Left Of Regular Season

• NBA Commissioner Adam Silver Says He Expects Big Raises For WNBA Players In New Collective Bargaining Agreement - And That They ‘Deserve It’

Today’s Special Guest

Tim Russ, actor, musician, director, producer, screenwriter - and amateur astronomer - is joining us at the bar tonight! You may know him best from his acting role as Tuvok from the Star Trek universe, or the comedy “Samantha Who” with Christina Applegate. Your kids or grandkids may know him better as “Principal Franklin” from the Nickelodeon show “iCarly.” But Tim is also a voice actor and a great musician, with multiple albums to his credit. He’s also written and produced award-winning work, like the web series, “Bloomers” which has a new third season. He’s also got a new project 12 Sided Die, a romantic comedy series about a group of friends that play a fictionalized version of Dungeons & Dragons. On top of all that, Tim is also an activist and outspoken progressive, who knows his topics well. We’ll talk with him about the projects he’s involved with now, and all about the news of the day.

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