President Trump heads to Asia as government shutdown enters Day 25: Live updates

Who donated $130M to Pentagon during shutdown?

What impact would expiring subsidies have on ACA?

How are Capitol Police handling unpaid wages?

What specific puppet incident did Virginia Giuffre allege involving Prince Andrew?

Why did Prince Andrew abandon royal titles after the book's revelations?

WASHINGTON ‒ The federal government shutdown entered Day 25 on Saturday with no end in sight and any deal potentially delayed further after President Donald Trump left for a six-day trip to Asia that Democrats say he should have scrapped.

Trump's visit to Asia, where he will swing through Malaysia, Japan and South Korea, will take him far away from the stalemate in Congress, preventing him from being a part of any negotiations to reopen the government.

Trump has refused to meet with Democratic congressional leaders throughout the nearly four-week shutdown, the second longest shutdown in United States history. The president has left it up to Congress to reach a deal, while blaming Democrats for 12 times voting against a Republican-backed continuing resolution to keep funding at current levels to end the shutdown.

Trump left on Air Force One late Friday night and is expected to return to Washington on Thursday, Oct. 30. His presence in Washington would be needed to sign any legislation to reopen the government. Trump told reporters he didn’t know if the shutdown would be resolved by the time he returns.

DC-area Marine Corps Marathon still scheduled despite shutdown

The 50th annual Marine Corps Marathon is still scheduled for Sunday, Oct. 26, according to the event's website and social media accounts. 

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Despite the ongoing government shutdown, the annual event, one of the world's largest marathons, will continue. The race will run through Virginia and Washington, D.C., including past some of the nation's most famous landmarks. Residents and runners can expect road closures throughout the region due to the event, which is set to start just after 7 a.m.. -Zachary Schermele

Key dates to watch in the shutdown

As the shutdown grinds on with no end in sight, here are some key dates ahead:

Oct. 31 - Members of the military received their Oct. 15 paychecks, but it is unclear whether the government has the money for their next paychecks on Halloween.

Oct. 31 and Nov. 5 ‒ House aides are paid once a month and are at risk of missing their Oct. 31 paychecks.Staff members of U.S. senators missed their first paychecks on Monday, Oct. 20. They will miss their next checks, scheduled for Nov. 5, if the shutdown is still going on.

Nov. 1 - Open enrollment begins under the Affordable Care Act, nicknamed Obamacare. Premiums are projected to more than double without an extension of subsidies that expire Dec. 31. Most Senate Democrats are voting against reopening the government unless the tax credits are extended but Republicans contend the government should reopen before health care negotiations.

Nov. 1 ‒ Early childhood Head Start programs for low-income families will be at risk of disruptions if the government is not reopened by the start of November.

Nov. 4 - Election Day in Virginia, New Jersey, California, New York City and in other cities and states nationwide. It's the first coast-to-coast voting since Trump's 2024 White House win.

Nov. 5 ‒ If the shutdown lasts until Nov. 5, it will break the record for the federal government's longest shutdown. That mark now belongs to the 2018-2019 shutdown during Trump's first presidency, in which Republicans and Democrats battled over funding Trump's wall on the U.S.-Mexico border.

Nov. 24 ‒ Members of Congress could be motivated to reopen the government before their weeklong Thanksgiving vacations begin.

Schumer rips Trump for going abroad amid shutdown

In 2013, when a government shutdown brought Washington grinding to a halt, former President Barack Obama canceled a scheduled trip to Asia. Faced with a nearly identical conundrum this week, President Trump still decided to travel to the same region. 

Congressional Democrats have been eagerly drawing that contrast in recent days, ripping Trump for going abroad amid a crisis at home.

“While Americans are struggling to make ends meet, federal workers are going without pay, and millions of families are bracing for soaring health care costs, the president is leaving the country," said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer in a statement Friday. "Instead of doing his job, President Trump is abandoning it."

With Trump out of town, Schumer put the onus on GOP lawmakers to come to the table and negotiate with Democrats to end the shutdown. Though pain is worsening every day for Americans, the prospects of any major deal getting cut while the leader of the Republican party is across the world are slim. -Zachary Schermele

Trump says shutdown donation to Pentagon came from US citizen

President Trump said the anonymous donor who has gifted the Pentagon $130 million to help pay military members during the government shutdown is a U.S. citizen.

"He doesn’t want publicity," Trump told reporters on Oct. 24 aboard Air Force One en route to Asia. "He prefer that his name not be mentioned which is pretty unusual in the world I come from and in the world of politics you want your name mentioned."

The Pentagon confirmed the donation on Oct. 24, which marks a dramatic break from the government's process to fund the military via federal dollars appropriated by Congress. - Darren Samuelsohn

Trump says he's 'willing' to meet with Democrats upon his return to US

The president told reporters on board his flight to Asia that he's open to meeting with Democratic leadership on the government shutdown when he's back in the U.S.

"I would, I’d be willing to," Trump said on Air Force One a couple of minutes after his departure from Andrews Air Force Base. "I would have now too. I left, I said come on over, just put the government back. All they have to do is say yes, then it’s over. And then we go into negotiations."

Trump and Democrats last met in person just days before the shutdown began - during a White House meeting where they failed to reach an agreement that's led to 25 days of government closure. - Darren Samuelsohn

Trump to use $130 million donation from 'friend' to pay military

The Pentagon said it accepted an anonymous $130 million donation from an ally of Trump that it plans to use to pay military members during the government shutdown.

The move marks a dramatic break from the government's process to fund the military, which relies on funding appropriated from Congress. It comes as Trump has also accepted private donations from wealthy donors to build a $300-billion ballroom on the White House grounds.

Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell, in an Oct. 24 statement, confirmed the department accepted the anonymous donation under its "general gift acceptance authority."

Trump discussed the donation during White House remarks on Oct. 23, saying a "friend of mine," whose name the president declined to identify, recently called the president to say, "I'd like to contribute any shortfall that you have because of the Democrat shutdown."

"And today he sent us a check for $130 million," Trump said.

Service members have worked through the government shutdown, which started Oct. 1. But like other "essential" workers, they are not guaranteed paychecks.

The Pentagon, at Trump's instruction, altered the Defense Department's budget to ensure the nation's 1.3 million active-duty troops received their most recent paychecks Oct. 15. But it is unclear whether the government has the money for their next paychecks on Oct. 31.

Trump's plans to use the donation to pay military members raised legal and ethical concerns from Democrats. A Pentagon policy from March outlines purposes that gifts can be used for, such as the maintenance of schools, hospitals and other buildings, as well as injured members of the armed service. The policy also requires the department to consult with ethics officials before accepting gifts of more than $10,000. ‒ Joey Garrison

Expiring health care subsidies remains the focus of shutdown for Democrats

Health care policy remains the dividing line for Democrats on Day 24 of the federal government shutdown.

Senate Democrats have 12 times blocked a Republican-backed continuing resolution to fund the government at existing spending levels. Democrats argue legislation to reopen the government should also extend expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies and reverse Republicans’ Medicaid cuts passed over the summer.

Republicans have refused to entertain negotiations on health care policy, arguing the health care subsidies should be debated by Congress after the shutdown is over.

Democrats have circled Nov. 1 as a key date in their push. That’s when open enrollment for the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, begins and millions of Americans will start shopping for their 2026 health coverage plans.

If the subsidies are not extended by November, healthcare.gov consumers could experience sticker shock when they start searching for health care plans. Premiums are expected to double for millions of Americans if the subsidies are not renewed, according to the research organization KFF. ‒ Joey Garrison

Capitol Police union says officers are in dire straits amid shutdown

With the government shutdown almost certain to reach a fifth week, lawmakers' inability to compromise is increasingly hurting the people in charge of protecting them. 

Gus Papathanasiou, the head of the labor union for the United States Capitol Police, said his colleagues, on their second pay period without a check, are feeling the financial pressure.

"My officers are frustrated right now," he said in a statement Friday. "I have officers who are taking out loans to pay their rent and feed their families. I have officers who are borrowing money from family members to make their car payment, pay for daycare, or pay their student loans."

Competing bills to pay federal workers, including law enforcement officers, during the shutdown failed to advance in the Senate this week.  ‒Zachary Schermele

Reach Joey Garrison on X @joeygarrison.