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Johnson says he doesn’t ‘have any strategy’ to negotiate with Dems on shutdown

October 14, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — Speaker Mike Johnson dismissed the possibility he could change his strategy to end the government shutdown by negotiating legislative changes with Democrats, telling reporters on Tuesday that he doesn’t “have any strategy” to end the impasse in place of the GOP’s lackluster pressure campaign to pass a “clean” continuing resolution.

Johnson on Tuesday pushed Democrats to support the House-passed funding bill and slammed the Democrats’ $1.5 trillion proposal, which extends health care subsidies under the Affordable Care Act and reverses cuts to Medicaid.

Asked whether he may consider a different negotiation track as the pressure campaign against Democrats has so far failed to break the standoff, Johnson reiterated that the House-passed bill is a “clean” continuing resolution — free from legislative gimmicks or political games.

“Why don’t I change my strategy? I don’t have any strategy,” the speaker told reporters. “I’m doing the right thing, the clearly obvious thing, the traditional thing.”

The Senate is set to vote Tuesday night — its eighth time — on the GOP-backed “clean” continuing resolution that would fund the government. It’s expected to fail again as the shutdown enters its third workweek.

Congressional Democrats representing Maryland and Virginia — where a significant number of federal workers reside — criticized Republicans over the shutdown on Tuesday morning and supported the workers.

“What we have seen happen to our federal employees we will continues to speak out against,” Sen. Angela Alsobrooks, a Maryland Democrat, said. “We want them to know we appreciate them, we appreciate your service to our country, we still need you, we still need what you offer our country and we will continue to work until you can be able to offer it.”

Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland said President Donald Trump and Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought are “viscously” attacking federal employees.

OMB is working on ways to get paychecks to federal law-enforcement officers amid the ongoing shutdown, according to an OMB official. This comes after recent moves to pay members of the military and fund the critical Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children program.

Trump said he’s directing Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to use “all available funds” to pay members of the military on Wednesday, Oct. 15 despite the shutdown.

The Pentagon said Tuesday that it will use $8 billion found in research, development and testing funds to cover paychecks for the troops on Wednesday.

The move won the approval of Speaker Johnson.

“Look, my understanding of this is they have every right to move the funds around, duly appropriated dollars from Congress to the Department of Defense,” Johnson said Tuesday. “If the Democrats want to go to court and challenge troops being paid, bring it. OK?”

OMB said on its X account on Tuesday that the Trump administration is “making every preparation” to ride out the government shutdown without caving to Democrats’ demands. The agency said they’d continue cutting the federal workforce in the meantime.

“Pay the troops, pay law enforcement, continue the RIFs, and wait,” the post said.

Lawmakers are still in a stalemate with negotiations at a standstill.

“We’re barreling toward one of the longest shutdowns in American history,” Johnson said on Monday.

The record is 35 days and that was set in Trump’s first term.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said during an MSNBC interview Monday that he does not believe the American people will allow the federal government shutdown to proceed much longer because they’ll pressure Republicans to negotiate with Democrats.

Jeffries said Republicans remain unwilling to negotiate over health care as the shutdown continues.

because they’d rather keep the government shut down than deal with the cost-of-living crisis that exists in the United States of America,” Jeffries said.

Isabella Murray contributed to this report.

In ‘monumental’ voting rights case, Supreme Court weighs use of race in redistricting

October 14, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — When a federal court concluded Louisiana’s 2022 congressional map violated the Voting Rights Act by discriminating against Black voters, the state legislature created a new map with a second majority-Black district to comply with the law.

In a blockbuster case that could be decided on the eve of next year’s midterm elections, the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday will consider whether the use of race in drawing that extra district ran afoul of the Constitution.

“The key question is whether a state can take race into account, indeed whether a state must take race into account, or whether that violates the Equal Protection Clause,” said Sarah Isgur, SCOTUSblog editor and ABC News legal contributor.

The outcome of the case could determine whether Louisiana and many other states may have to redraw their maps in a race-blind manner, which could in turn impact minority representation and the balance of power in legislatures nationwide.

“This could be a monumental decision,” said Jeffrey Rosen, president and CEO of the National Constitution Center.

For decades, the high court has said that race cannot be a predominant factor in drawing congressional district boundaries, but it has also given states breathing room to consider race in order to ensure minority voters receive equal opportunity to elect representatives of their choice.

Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act has long been a guardrail against states “packing” Black voters into districts and “cracking” communities of color into other districts with an aim of diluting their electoral influence.

More than one third of Louisiana’s population is Black. Two of its six U.S. congressional districts are majority-Black — both are represented by Democrats.

A group of self-described “non-white voters” sued the state over the second majority-minority district, setting up a legal clash of two competing principles: Section 2’s requirement that minorities be given equal opportunity to participate in the electoral process, and the 14th Amendment’s equal protection guarantee of race-neutral treatment by the government.

“Section 2 has been absolutely critical in protecting voters against racial discrimination in voting, and it’s been working in terms of moving us toward a true multiracial democracy where race doesn’t matter,” said Sophia Lin Lakin, director of the Voting Rights Project at ACLU.

“But what we know and what was shown in Louisiana, and multiple federal courts have agreed with us on this point, is that we’re not there yet,” she said.

Louisiana and the voter plaintiffs argue in court filings that racial classifications are “uniquely odious” and unconstitutional. There should be “zero tolerance for any consideration of race,” the state told the justices.

“If the court accepts those arguments, it could effectively dismantle Section 2,” said George Washington University law professor Spencer Overton. “And if that happens, that could allow legislatures like Louisiana, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Texas, to dismantle districts where Black and Latino voters have an opportunity to elect candidates of their choice.”

“Even in states where legislatures are sympathetic to minority voters,” Overton added, “opponents of minority voting rights could bring lawsuits claiming that districts where voters of color have an opportunity to elect the candidates of the choice are unconstitutional racial gerrymanders.”

The Supreme Court’s conservative majority has signaled growing skepticism of racial classifications in other contexts, including college admissions, as well as the electoral process.

In a landmark 2013 opinion in Shelby County v Holder, the Court gutted Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act which had required states with a legacy of racial discrimination to seek preclearance from the Justice Department before implementing changes to voting laws.

Eight years later, in a narrow 6-3 decision in Brnovich v DNC, the Court narrowed the scope of Section 2’s protections around rules governing the time, place or manner of voting.

“Section 2 is the only part that imposes meaningful requirements that voting districts be created for racial minorities,” Rosen said. “What’s at stake is whether there’ll be any teeth left to the Voting Rights Act at all.”

The court could uphold Louisiana’s map — and two majority-minority districts — though most legal analysts think it’s unlikely.

Alternatively, the justices could rule narrowly in favor of the challengers, finding the map relied too much on race as a factor and force the legislature back to the drawing board. A broader ruling could potentially address the future of Section 2 overall and clarify how and whether any consideration of race in gerrymandering might be legal.

A decision is expected by the end of June 2026 when the court’s term ends.

House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan calls on Jack Smith to testify over Trump investigations

October 14, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — The House Judiciary Committee wants former special counsel Jack Smith to testify before the panel behind closed doors about his investigations into President Donald Trump.

Committee Chairman Jim Jordan on Tuesday requested an interview by Oct. 28 and is demanding documents and communications as well.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

North Carolina is the next state to take up partisan redrawing of congressional maps

October 14, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(RALEIGH, N.C.) — North Carolina’s GOP statehouse leaders say the legislature will meet next week to consider redrawing the state’s congressional districts, saying they want to bolster President Donald Trump as the White House continues to encourage Republicans to redistrict mid-decade ahead of next year’s midterm elections.

“President Trump earned a clear mandate from the voters of North Carolina and the rest of the country, and we intend to defend it by drawing an additional Republican Congressional seat,” state Rep. Destin Hall, the speaker of the North Carolina House, wrote in a blog post on Monday.

The Republican-controlled legislature was already scheduled to meet next week. Although North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein is a Democrat, the state’s constitution doesn’t allow him to veto redistricted legislative or congressional maps.

North Carolina’s congressional map is currently being litigated in multiple ongoing lawsuits, according to a roundup from NYU’s Brennan Center for Justice, over allegations the map racially discriminates and is a partisan gerrymander.

Currently, 10 Republicans and four Democrats make up North Carolina’s congressional delegation.

Sen. Phil Berger, the Senate majority leader, wrote Monday, “Picking up where Texas left off, we will hold votes in our October session to redraw North Carolina’s congressional map to ensure Gavin Newsom doesn’t decide the congressional majority,” referencing the the California governor’s Proposition 50 special election, when voters will decide if they want to adopt a map that could help Democrats flip five seats.

House Redistricting Chairmen Brenden Jones and Hugh Blackwell said in a joint statement: “We’re stepping into this redistricting battle because California and the radical left are attempting to rig the system to handpick who runs Congress. This ploy is nothing new, and North Carolina will not stand by while they attempt to stack the deck. President Trump has called on us to fight back, and North Carolina stands ready to level the playing field.”

In response, North Carolina Democratic Party Chair Anderson Clayton called state Republican leaders subservient to Trump and guilty of corruption.

“North Carolina Republicans Phil Berger and Destin Hall are weak subservient cowards willing to steamroll the people of our state so they can give Donald Trump what he wants — power without accountability. Today, [North Carolina General Assembly] Republicans announced they will be tearing up our already brutally gerrymandered congressional maps and redrawing them to give more seats to Congressional Republicans. Let me be clear: maps should not give you power; voters should. When politicians pick their voters instead of voters picking their politicians, that’s not democracy. That’s corruption,” Clayton said in a statement to ABC News.

Stein responded on Monday to the GOP statehouse leaders’ announcement by slamming them for failing voters and calling out how the state legislature has yet to pass a budget.

“The General Assembly works for North Carolina, not Donald Trump,” Stein wrote.

“The Republican leadership in the General Assembly has failed to pass a budget, failed to pay our teachers and law enforcement what they deserve, and failed to fully fund Medicaid. Now they are failing you, the voters. These shameless politicians are abusing their power to take away yours.”

North Carolina Democrats are planning an anti-redistricting rally on Oct. 21 in Raleigh.

Police looking to identify woman, man seen in ‘potential abduction’ captured on Ring camera video

October 14, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Police in Kansas are asking the public for help in identifying a man taking a woman by force seen on home surveillance footage in a “possible abduction,” authorities said.

The incident happened early Sunday at approximately 2 a.m. in a neighborhood in Wichita, police said, though the circumstances that led up to the abduction are currently unclear.

The homeowner reported she had Ring doorbell camera footage “showing a female being grabbed by a male, and then forced away from the area,” Wichita Police Capt. Todd Ojile said during a press briefing Tuesday.

Responding officers canvassed the area for any other footage or witnesses, though the Ring camera video, which was released by the Wichita Police Department on social media, is the only footage of the incident, according to Ojile.

“Our main concern is the safety and welfare of woman seen in that video,” Wichita Police Chief Joe Sullivan said during the briefing. “Detectives have been working diligently, following every lead and tip we have received.”

A $2,000 reward is being offered for tips leading to the identification of the man or woman seen in the video, police announced Tuesday.

Authorities have checked missing persons reports filed so far this month, but did not find anything to match this incident, Ojile said.

The woman screams out in the video, though police have been unable to confirm what she said, according to Wichita Police Capt. Aaron Moses. Authorities processed the audio and reduced the background noise in hopes that someone will recognize her voice.

It is unclear if the man and woman left on foot or in a vehicle, Moses said.

Moses said police were “concerned” by the footage and “acted quickly to get that information,” and they don’t have anything to imply this is a hoax.

“Our priority here remains that female’s safety and verifying that she is safe,” Moses said. “So I would say, even if you are the female in this video and you’re concerned about calling us, please call us so that we can verify that you are safe, and then we will continue our investigation to what occurred.”

Police said they have reached out to regional and federal law enforcement partners for assistance.

Man who allegedly killed Queens couple after forcing way into home pleads not guilty: DA

October 14, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — A man pleaded not guilty Tuesday to charges he forced his way into a Queens, New York, home, killed the elderly couple who lived there, set fire to the house and then went on a shopping spree with the victims’ credit card, prosecutors said.

Jamel McGriff, 42, is charged in a 50-count indictment with first-degree murder, second-degree murder, kidnapping, arson, burglary and other offenses in connection with last month’s home invasion.

McGriff allegedly “made multiple attempts to transfer money from their bank account, murdered them and set the house ablaze before fleeing with their phones and credit cards,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said.

On Sept. 8, McGriff allegedly knocked on the Oltons’ neighbor’s door asking to charge his phone, and the neighbor turned him away, police said. Surveillance video showed McGriff then going to the victims’ house and victim Frank Olton letting him in, according to police.

Surveillance video showed McGriff going into the Oltons’ home around 10 a.m. and he did not leave until roughly 3:08 p.m, and he was seen walking from the home carrying a duffel bag, authorities said. Later, the Oltons’ son was notified by an alarm company there was a fire at the house.

Frank Olton, 76, was found tied to a pole in his basement suffering from multiple stab wounds, and his wife Maureen Olton, 77, was found on the house’s first floor, severely burned, the NYPD said.

After McGriff allegedly left the Oltons’ home, around 6 p.m., he is accused of making two purchases totaling $796.10 on Frank Olton’s credit card at Macy’s in Herald Square in Manhattan, prosecutors said. McGriff allegedly provided the cashier with his personal loyalty number for the transactions, prosecutors said.

On Sept. 9, McGriff allegedly deposited the Oltons’ phones into a machine that disburses cash for mobile devices at a Bronx check cashing store, and he allegedly used his own personal identification for the transactions, officials said.

McGriff is due to return to court on Nov. 12. He faces a life sentence if convicted.

As new tariffs take effect, US consumers footing more than half the burden: Report

October 14, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — With new tariffs taking effect Tuesday on furniture and lumber, an analysis released by Goldman Sachs finds American consumers are paying for more than half of the cost of the levies imposed by President Donald Trump.

In a research note to its clients, the global investment and banking giant said U.S. consumers will absorb 55% of tariff costs by the end of this year. American businesses would pay 22% of the costs, foreign exporters would absorb 18% and 5% would be evaded, according to the Goldman Sachs analysis.

Consumers could end up paying 70% of the cost by the end of next year, the report said.

“At the moment, however, U.S. businesses are likely bearing a larger share of the costs because some tariffs have just gone into effect and it takes time to raise prices on consumers and negotiate lower import prices with foreign suppliers,” the analysis adds.

In a statement to ABC News, White House spokesperson Kush Desai said, “Americans may face a transition period from tariffs,” but insisted “the cost of tariffs will ultimately be borne by foreign exporters.”

“Companies are already shifting and diversifying their supply chains in response to tariffs, including by onshoring production to the United States,” Desai said. “Americans can rest assured that the Administration will continue to deliver economic relief from Joe Biden’s inflation crisis while laying the groundwork for a long-term restoration of American Greatness.”

The Yale Budget Lab reported on Sept. 26 that U.S. consumers face an overall average effective tariff rate of 17.9% – the highest since 1934.

In August, Trump blasted Goldman Sachs’ CEO David Solomon and the firm’s economists after they put out a report saying consumers will absorb tariff costs.

The new Goldman analysis, which was released on Sunday, does not take into account Trump’s latest threat to impose additional 100% tariffs on Chinese imports set to take effect on Nov. 1.

And on Tuesday, new tariffs kick in at midnight. Timber and lumber imports will face an additional 10% tariff.

Home-building costs have also been soaring and are expected to climb higher with the new tariffs on lumber. A UBS report said the new tariffs on wood products could add another $1,000 to the average cost of building a home, on top of the $8,000 in tariff costs home builders have already seen this year.

Kitchen cabinets and upholstered furniture will face new 25% tariffs. Homebuilders and some furniture companies have warned that those higher costs could mean higher prices for consumers.

Other domestic furniture makers have celebrated the new tariffs.

“These factories are the most likely to see increased demand for their domestically-produced products, because imported upholstered furniture that was previously in the same price range now will be subject to the new tariffs,” the American Home Furnishings Alliance said in a statement to ABC News.

The U.S. imported $25.5 billion in furniture in 2024, up 7% from the previous year, according to trade outlet Furniture Today. Vietnam and China accounted for roughly 60% of the imports, the report found.

In recent months, Trump has placed country-specific tariffs on the top furniture exporters. Products from Vietnam face a 20% tariff, for instance, while Chinese imports encounter a 30% levy.

The overall price of furniture has gone up 4.7% since August 2024, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Prices for living room and dining room furniture have climbed 9.5%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Furniture prices soared 1.4% over three months ending in June, when compared to the previous three-month period, the government’s personal consumption expenditure index shows.

“This is a big jump,” Jason Miller, a professor of supply chain management at Michigan State University, told ABC News in an August interview, noting the index had largely declined between the mid-1990s and the mid-2010s. “It’s difficult to see many positives from a consumer standpoint at the moment.”

I-85 crash: 8 dead, multiple cats injured after semi-truck collision in Georgia

October 14, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(ATLANTA) — Eight people were killed in a fiery, six-vehicle pileup on Interstate 85 in Jackson County, Georgia, the Jackson County Coroner’s Office confirmed to ABC News.

A semi-trailer chicken feed truck collided into the back of a Dodge van Monday afternoon, causing a chain reaction that ensnared four other cars in the northbound lanes of I-85, just south of mile marker 147, according to the Georgia State Patrol.

The Dodge van caught on fire and all seven passengers were pronounced dead at the scene, according to officials.

The coroner confirmed to ABC News on Tuesday that another individual in the pile-up was also pronounced dead.

Officials have not yet released the identities of those killed.

One of the vehicles in the crash was an animal transportation van that belonged to Furkids Animal Rescue and Shelters, Georgia’s largest no-kill animal shelter, according to their website.

The van was transporting 37 cats to a shelter in Vermont, and the driver, along with multiple cats, sustained injuries in the collision. Five cats are missing, according to their Facebook post.

“In the chaos of the wreckage, cages were crushed, and cats began to flee,” the organization said in the post. “We are conducting triage on all of the cats involved to determine the extent of their injuries and needed medical care.”

“This is a tragic day, and our thoughts are with all who are grieving,” the organization added.

The incident is being investigated by the Georgia State Patrol’s Specialized Collision Reconstruction Team, as the collision closed all northbound lanes of I-85 in the area until almost 10 p.m.

“We do not have any updates at this time. This crash is still under investigation. Once we receive new information, we will provide you with an update,” Georgia State Patrol spokesperson Franka Young told ABC News.

Jackson County is about 60 miles north of Atlanta.

‘I don’t have any strategy’: Speaker Johnson still backs GOP’s clean CR as shutdown drags into 3rd week

October 14, 2025 by WDNY Radio

against Democrats has so far failed to break the standoff, Johnson reiterated that the House-passed bill is a “clean” continuing resolution — free from legislative gimmicks or political games.

“Why don’t I change my strategy? I don’t have any strategy,” the speaker told reporters. “I’m doing the right thing, the clearly obvious thing, the traditional thing.”

Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland said President Donald Trump and Office of Management and Budget Russ Vought are “viscously” attacking federal employees.

Trump said he’s directing Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to use “all available funds” to pay members of the military on Wednesday, Oct. 15 despite the shutdown.

A senior Trump administration official said on Tuesday that the military pay will come from the Department of Defense’s research and development funds — winning approval from Speaker Johnson.

“Pay the troops, pay law enforcement, continue the RIFs, and wait,” the post said.

Lawmakers are still in a stalemate with negotiations at a standstill.

“We’re barreling toward one of the longest shutdowns in American history,” Johnson said on Monday.

The record is 35 days and that was set in Trump’s first term.

Jeffries said Republicans remain unwilling to negotiate over health care as the shutdown continues.

“House Republicans have actually canceled votes for the third consecutive week because they’d rather keep the government shut down than deal with the cost-of-living crisis that exists in the United States of America,” Jeffries said.

Isabella Murray contributed to this report.

Mental health, substance abuse staffers fired amid government shutdown: Sources

October 14, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — Dozens of employees at the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration were laid off in the wave of government shutdown firings last week, multiple sources told ABC News.

Best known for overseeing the rollout of the 988 suicide prevention hotline, SAMHSA works with state and local governments on mental health and addiction initiatives and gives out billions in grants.

The firings, which began Friday, include widespread layoffs of staff that oversee child, adolescent and family mental health services, sources told ABC News.

Roughly one in 10 of SAMHSA’s 900 staff were fired in the spring Department of Government Efficiency cuts. Other staff were recently transferred to other programs in the Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees SAMHSA.

A HHS spokesperson told ABC News that employees who received a Reduction in Force notice “were deemed non-essential by their respective division.”

While the impacts of these latest firings are still being determined, a source tells ABC the agency was “hard hit.”

ABC News’ Will McDuffie contributed to this report.

If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of suicide — free, confidential help is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Call or text the national lifeline at 988.

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