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The government has been shut down for 30 days, and this weekend could mark some breaking points. On Saturday, SNAP benefits are projected to run out. While a federal judge may rule for the food aid to continue flowing through an emergency government fund, it's not yet clear whether the nearly 42 million Americans who rely on SNAP will receive their benefits.
Also tomorrow, Americans who get their healthcare through the government’s Affordable Care Act will start enrolling for next year and find that prices have skyrocketed, increasing 30% on average in the 30 states where the federal government manages the market. Congress can mitigate those costs by renewing healthcare subsidies, but that has been the exact sticking point keeping the government closed. Democrats refused to vote to fund the government unless those subsidies were guaranteed, but Republican leaders say they won’t discuss the issue until the budget is passed and the government reopened.
Analysts say that the public backlash from healthcare price spikes and SNAP chaos could potentially bring the two parties to the negotiating table.
The US has reported 1,563 measles cases this year — the most in over 30 years — but experts say the real number may top 5,000. Outbreaks are spreading in 41 states, fueled by declining vaccination rates. Most cases involve unvaccinated people, with rising clusters in Texas, South Carolina, Utah, Arizona, and Minnesota.
Washington and Toronto buzzed this week with talk of the Canada-US relationship. On Tuesday Prime Minister Mark Carney joined President Donald Trump in the Oval Office for a warm but inconclusive meeting. There were no breakthroughs on tariffs, just promises to “work quickly” on steel, aluminum, and energy. Trump did reportedly appreciate Carney’s proposal to revive the long-dead Keystone XL pipeline, which Trump had proposed in February. The next day in Toronto, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told attendees at the Eurasia Group and BMO US-Canada Summit that bilateral tariff deals were possible but that the integration of the two countries’ auto industries was “over.” This provoked angry reaction from Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who threatened to retaliate by cutting off energy and critical-mineral exports to the US.
Air travel across the US faced widespread delays for a second day as air traffic control staffing shortages hit major airports, including Nashville, Chicago, and Philadelphia. The Federal Aviation Administration, already short about 3,000 controllers, reported “insufficient staffing” at multiple facilities. The shortages, worsened by the ongoing government shutdown, have forced controllers and TSA officers to work without pay, prompting increased absences. While officials deny any organized protest, union leaders warn the system is “fragile” and could see worsening disruptions if the shutdown continues and workers continue missing paychecks.
Three numbers, one story: the US government shutdown
The US government has officially shut down for the first time since 2019, after bitter partisan gridlock left Washington unable to pass a funding deal. Hundreds of thousands of “non-essential” federal workers now face the usual furloughs, but an added twist this time is that President Donald Trump has threatened to use the shutdown as an excuse to permanently fire many federal employees. Here is a look at how many workers of the 2 million civilian federal workers are in jeopardy until the government reopens.
One of the major factors that pushed Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba to resign over the weekend was inflation. Although Japan’s headline figure of 3% may not seem all that high, the country had grown accustomed to rates at or below 1% between 2012 and 2022. What’s more, the headline figure masks soaring prices for a major staple Japanese food: rice. The cause? Extreme heat in 2023 and an earthquake last year spurred major supply shortages. Here’s a fine-grain look at rice price trends over the past year.
100 Years of Category 5+ Hurricanes in North America
20 years ago, Hurricane Katrina devastated Louisiana and the Gulf Coast, killing nearly 1,400 people and destroying thousands of homes in the predominantly Black Lower 9th Ward of New Orleans. While Katrina remains the costliest US storm in history at $200 billion, it is just one of the increasingly frequent category 5 hurricanes to hit North America over the last 50 years.