The Latest: Trump hosts Zelenskyy at the White House following call with Putin
President Donald Trump is hosting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for talks at the White House on Friday, with the U.S. leader signaling he’s not ready to agree to sell Kyiv a long-range missile system that the Ukrainians say they desperately need.
Zelenskyy gets his one-on-one with Trump a day after the U.S. president and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a lengthy phone call to discuss the conflict.
In recent days, Trump had shown an openness to selling Ukraine long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles, even as Putin warned that such a move would further strain the U.S.-Russian relationship. But following Thursday’s call with Putin, Trump appeared to downplay the prospects of Ukraine getting the missiles, which have a range of about 995 miles (1,600 kilometers).
The latest:
House pro-forma session passes without swearing in for Arizona congresswoman-elect
In a pro-forma session, the House is briefly opened but legislative business is not typically conducted. Republicans closed another such session Friday without allowing the swearing in of Adelita Grijalva, who won a special election last month.
House Speaker Mike Johnson has refused to allow Grijalva to take her office while he keeps the House out of Washington during the shutdown. Grijalva would also provide the last signature needed to force a vote on a bill to make the Department of Justice release case files on Jeffrey Epstein — legislation that Johnson opposes.
House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries said earlier that the Arizona attorney general would take legal action against Johnson if Grijalva was not sworn in Friday.
With no takers yet, White House holds meeting with colleges weighing ‘compact’
The White House asked five universities to join a Friday call to discuss the offer, which would provide favorable access to federal funding in return for commitments in line with Trump’s priorities.
It follows rejections from four of the nine universities invited to sign on. The White House asked college leaders to provide initial feedback by Oct. 20, yet so far none have agreed to the deal.
Those that have not yet announced a decision are Dartmouth College, the University of Arizona, the University of Texas, the University of Virginia and Vanderbilt University.
The compact has stirred a wave of pushback from critics who say it would restrict free speech and cede sweeping control to the government.
With cameras rolling live, Trump again drops an F-bomb
Trump was asked about reports that the Venezuelan government offered a plan rejected by the U.S. in which President Nicolás Maduro would agree to eventually leave power.
“He’s offered everything, Trump said. He added, “Because he doesn’t want to f— around with the United States.”
In June, when Trump was frustrated with Israel and Iran attacking each other after a ceasefire, he told a group of reporters that the countries had “been fighting so long and so hard that they don’t know what the f— they’re doing.”
Trump confirms US strike on alleged ‘drug-carrying submarine’ in the Caribbean
“We attacked a submarine, and that was a drug-carrying submarine built specifically for the transportation of massive amounts of drugs” Trump said while hosting the Ukrainian president at the White House.
Secretary of State Rubio did not dispute that there were survivors, but he repeatedly said details would be forthcoming.
FEMA staff protest cuts outside agency headquarters
Current and former staff of the Federal Emergency Management Agency demonstrated against workforce and program cuts during a “FEMA Solidarity Rally” on Friday, a potentially risky act of protest because some of the same staffers were placed on leave after signing a public dissent letter in August.
A few dozen people gathered outside the agency’s headquarters in Washington, D.C., calling on Trump to stop dismantling the agency and for its acting chief, David Richardson, to resign, among other demands.
The agency has been in upheaval since January, with some states waiting nearly two months for disaster declarations to be approved and huge cuts to resilience and preparedness funding. About 18% of the agency’s permanent full-time employees had departed as of June, including 24 senior-level staffers.
Trump says Putin was ‘very generous’ praising him for peacemaking efforts
The president said his Russian counterpart was speaking on their call Thursday about Trump’s efforts to solve global conflicts and “said it was amazing.”
Trump then again complained that he didn’t get the Nobel Peace Prize this year, saying, “Somebody got it who’s a very nice woman.”
Despite his complaint, he then insisted he was unbothered.
“I don’t care about all that stuff. I just care about saving lives,” he said.
Zelenskyy suggests he’s interested in trading Ukrainian military drones for Tomahawk missiles
The Ukrainian leader said that while his country has thousands of military drones, they don’t have the strong missiles that the U.S. makes and suggested both countries can work together for their military goals.
Trump, when asked if the U.S. was interested in such a deal, said, “We are.”
He said that drone warfare has “really come to the fore” over the last few years because of the Russia-Ukraine war.
Trump says he understands why Hungary still buys Russian oil, despite his calls to cut off purchases
Trump has long said he would place tariffs to stop Russia’s war in Ukraine, so long as other countries in NATO stopped importing Russian oil. But while meeting with Zelenskyy, Trump seemed to defend Hungary’s purchases of Russian oil.
“Hungary is sort of stuck because they have one pipeline that’s been there for years and years and years, and they’re inland,” Trump said. “I spoke with the very great leader of Hungary, and they are, you know, it’s very hard for them to get oil. I understand it.”
Despite Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s claims that Hungary’s geography precludes sourcing fossil fuels from outside Russia, some critics and experts argue Hungary’s continued purchase of Russian oil and gas are more about politics than pipelines.
Trump plans to meet with Putin in Budapest, Hungary, saying he agreed to the location because he likes Orbán.
The U.S. president repeated his previous claims that India will not be purchasing oil from Russia at some point in the future, saying that the country has “already deescalated.”
It’s not clear whether Zelenskyy will join Trump’s meeting in Hungary with Putin
“To be determined” Trump said as he met with Zelenskyy in the Cabinet room at the White House.
He said it most likely will be a “double meeting,” but that Zelenskyy would be in touch throughout.
Trump said there is “bad blood” between Putin and Zelenskyy.
“These two leaders do not like each other and we want to make it comfortable for everybody,” he said.
Zelenskyy congratulates Trump over landing last week’s ceasefire and hostage deal in Gaza
At the start of his talks with Trump, Zelenskyy also said the U.S. president now has “momentum” to stop the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
“President Trump now has a big chance to finish this war,” Zelenskyy added.
Zelenskyy arrives at White House to meet with Trump
The Ukrainian president arrived at the White House at 1:25 pm EDT on Friday, greeted by members of the U.S. military holding state flags.
It’s the fourth meeting between Zelenskyy and Trump as they’ve sought to resolve Russia’s war in Ukraine. Trump spoke separately on Thursday by phone with Russian leader Vladimir Putin and plans to meet with him in roughly two weeks in Budapest, Hungary.
Federal courts are being forced to cut back because of the shutdown
Beginning Monday, courts around the country will maintain limited operations, the federal judiciary said Friday.
Federal judges will continue to serve and be paid, but other court employees will work without pay for now, or be furloughed. Decisions are being made by courthouse by courthouse.
Zelenskyy wants to interest Trump in an energy deal with Ukraine
The Ukrainian president isn’t just coming to the White House in search of military aid. He also has a business pitch for Trump that revolves around fossil fuels.
Ukrainian officials have indicated that Zelenskyy is looking to offer to store U.S. liquefied natural gas in Ukraine’s gas storage facilities, which would allow for American presence in the European energy market.
Zelenskyy previewed the strategy Thursday in meetings with Energy Secretary Chris Wright and the heads of American energy companies. Zelenskyy posted pictures of the meeting on X and said that it is important to restore Ukraine’s energy infrastructure after Russian attacks and expand “the presence of American businesses in Ukraine.”
Trump meets with Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli
It wasn’t clear why Trump was holding the meeting at the White House shortly before he was due to meet with Ukraine’s president.
A White House aide posted a photo of Trump meeting with Bocelli in the Oval Office while Bocelli’s music blared from speakers in the Rose Garden.
The music could be heard on the North Lawn, where Zelenskyy was due to arrive any moment.
Number of people arrested at Chicago-area ICE facility rises
As of midday, 11 people have been arrested outside the Broadview facility. Law enforcement is urging demonstrators to stay in designated “protest zones.”
The ICE facility has been the site of tense protests in recent weeks. Federal agents previously used tear gas and other chemical agents on protesters and journalists.
Illinois State Police said some protesters blocked a street outside the facility Friday and ignored requests to move to the designated protest area.
Kat Abughazaleh, a protester and congressional candidate, expressed outrage. “A free speech zone implies that everywhere else is not a free speech zone,” she said.
Abughazaleh said she was hit in the face with a baton Friday and saw a woman pushed to the ground by officers.
Trump calls the 100% tariff on China “not sustainable”
Trump said the new 100% tariff he’s threatened on Chinese goods is “not sustainable,” in an interview with Fox News that aired Friday.
The president said he was “forced” to consider the high tariff because of China’s new export controls on rare earths, used in products from smartphones to jet planes.
Trump said he hopes to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping on an upcoming Asia trip, and played down further tensions with China. “I think we’re going to do fine with China,” Trump said.
Trump also blamed former President Richard Nixon for opening the floodgate to doing business with China. “He allowed this to happen. You know he was the one, he opened China,” Trump said. “He unleashed it. And we have a very strong adversary, and they only respect strength.”
Nixon helped establish communications between the two governments when he visited the communist country in 1972, which led to the normalization of diplomatic ties in 1979.
Trump might not send Ukraine Tomahawks, but there are other weapons that would help Kyiv
Trump, after his call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday, appeared to throw cold water on the possibility of sending Ukraine the long-range missile system.
Although such a sale would be a splashy move, it could take years to provide the equipment and training necessary for Ukraine to use Tomahawks, said Mark Montgomery, an analyst at the hawkish Foundation for Defense of Democracies in Washington.
Montgomery said Ukraine could be better served in the near term with a surge of Extended Range Attack Munition, or ERAM, missiles and Army Tactical Missile System, known as ATACMS. The U.S. already approved the sale of up to 3,350 ERAMs to Kyiv earlier this year.
The Tomahawk, with a range of about 995 miles (1,600 kilometers), would allow Ukraine to strike far deeper in Russian territory than either the ERAM (about 285 miles, or 460 km) or ATACMS (about 186 miles, or 300 kilometers).
US seizes survivors of strike on suspected drug-carrying vessel
The U.S. has seized survivors after a strike Thursday on a suspected drug-carrying vessel in the Caribbean, the first since President Donald Trump began launching deadly attacks in the region this summer, according to a defense official and another person familiar with the matter.
The people confirmed the strike Friday on the condition of anonymity because it has not yet been acknowledged by President Donald Trump’s administration. It is believed to be at least the sixth strike since Augus, and the first to result in survivors who were picked up by the U.S. military. It was not immediately clear what would be done with the individuals.
This strike on Thursday brings the death toll from the Trump administration’s military action against vessels in the region to at least 28.
Trump says he expects more countries to join Abraham Accords ‘soon’
With a ceasefire and hostage deal between Israel and Hamas continuing to hold, Trump says he’s optimistic that more Middle East and Muslim countries will move to normalize relations with Israel.
The United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco forged diplomatic and commercial ties with Israel through Trump’s first-term effort dubbed the Abraham Accords. Trump now wants to quickly build on that effort and believes that Saudi Arabia—the region’s biggest economic power—could now be amenable.
Trump in an interview with Fox News’ Sunday Morning Futures added that Israel and U.S. strikes earlier this year that set back Iran’s nuclear program could also inform Riyadh’s calculations about joining the accords.
“I hope to see Saudi Arabia go in, and I hope to see others go in,” Trump said. “I think when Saudi Arabia goes in, everybody goes in.”
Senators introduce resolution to restrain U.S. from attacking Venezuela
Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine, along with Sens. Adam Schiff, a California Democrat, and Rand Paul, a Kentucky Republican, will again test Senate Republicans’ willingness to put a check on President Donald Trump’s war powers, this time with a resolution that would prevent Trump from attacking Venezuela without congressional authorization.
Kaine argues that the U.S. is engaged in hostilities with Venezuela and that the War Powers Resolution “was designed specifically to enable Congress to try to stop a war.”
The senators can force a Senate vote on the resolution in the coming weeks. It’s meant to build political pushback on the Trump administration’s aggressions in the region.
Trump says his threat of added 100% tariffs on Chinese goods is “not sustainable.”
The president in an interview seemed to acknowledge that his threat last week to put another 100% in import taxes on Chinese products would be problematic for the U.S. economy.
According to excerpts of his interview with Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures,” Trump said his plan to dramatically hike import taxes on Nov. 1 unless China removed restrictions on exports of rare earths elements essentially amounted to tough talk. The president plans to meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping at the end of this month in South Korea.
“It’s not sustainable,” Trump said of the possible tariffs, “but that’s what the number is. It’s probably not, you know, it could stand, but they forced me to do that.”
The president maintains that he has “always had a great relationship” with Xi and that Chinese officials “only respect strength.”
Former National Security Adviser John Bolton makes first court appearance
John Bolton arrived at a federal courthouse Friday to surrender to authorities and make his first court appearance on charges accusing the former Trump administration national security adviser of storing top secret records at home and sharing with relatives diary-like notes that contained classified information.
The 18-count federal indictment Thursday also suggests classified information was exposed when operatives believed to be linked to the Iranian government hacked Bolton’s email account and gained access to sensitive material he had shared. A Bolton representative told the FBI in 2021 that his emails had been hacked, prosecutors say, but did not reveal that Bolton had shared classified information through the account or that the hackers had possession of government secrets.
The closely watched case centers on a longtime fixture in Republican foreign policy circles who became known for his hawkish views on American power and who served for more than a year in Trump’s first administration before being fired in 2019. He later published a book highly critical of Trump.
