IT’S OVER. WHEW! At 10:15 last night, after a private dinner in the White House State Dining Room, President Donald Trump signed H.R. 5371, the “Continuing Appropriations, Agriculture, Legislative Branch, Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and Extensions Act, 2026.”
“This is a big day, a big night. It’s very important what has taken place because we’ve seen how good government can be and how bad government can be,” Trump said before putting a Sharpie to paper. “So, with my signature, the federal government will now resume normal operations.”
Final passage came last night when six Democrats joined Republicans to give the continuing resolution a narrow, but comfortable 222 to 209 margin, which came days after eight senators broke from the Democratic caucus to end the stalemate on the 43rd day. Only two Republicans voted against the measure, Reps. Thomas Massie (KY) and Greg Steube (FL).
The law, which funds the government through the end of January, not only provides that all federal employees will receive full back pay, whether they had to report to the office or not, but it also reverses the mass federal layoffs carried out by Trump during the shutdown.
HOUSE LOOKS TO REMOVE GOP PROVISION THAT WOULD ALLOW SENATORS TO SUE OVER BIDEN DOJ INVESTIGATIONS
TRUMP: ‘WHEN WE COME UP TO MIDTERMS … DON’T FORGET’: There were no words of conciliation from Trump, who launched into an angry assault on Democrats, who he accused of trying to “extort our country,” and “inflicted massive harm” blaming their failed effort to restore healthcare subsidies on “extremists in the other party” who “did it purely for political reasons.”
“They caused 20,000 flights to be canceled or delayed,” Trump said. “They deprived more than 1 million government workers from their paychecks and cut off food stamp benefits for millions and millions more Americans.”
“We’ll work on something having to do with healthcare. We can do a lot better. We can do great,” Trump said, suggesting as he has in recent days that he’ll propose a scheme that would cut out the middleman. “I’m calling today for insurance companies not to be paid, but for the money, this massive amount of money to be paid directly to the people of our country so that they can buy their own healthcare, which will be far better and far less expensive.”
Noting that government funding will run out in just over 11 weeks, Trump also foot-stomped his demand that Senate Republicans use the so-called “nuclear option” of eliminating the 60-vote requirement for passage of controversial legislation to give them the ability to impose their will on Democrats. “I also want to call for a termination to the filibuster so that this could never happen again,” Trump said. “Don’t forget, we have another date coming up in the not-too-distant future.”
TRUMP RAGES AT DEMOCRATS AND THE FILIBUSTER IN SIGNING BILL TO END GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN
KAINE: WHY WE CAVED: Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA), one of the eight Senate Democrats who broke ranks to end the shutdown said the end came only after Republicans suffered big losses in last week’s elections, and agreed to negotiate provisions to protect federal workers, including back pay and reinstatement of people who had been capriciously fired to “punish” the Democrats.
Kaine is under no illusions that a vote on restoring Obamacare subsidies does not mean a stand-alone bill will pass, or that President Trump would ever sign it. However, it was also clear that House Republicans, led by Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), were dug in and would not budge, no matter how many people lost food stamps or how chaotic air travel became.
“I have close knowledge of key actors, and I do not believe Republicans would have conceded on healthcare during the shutdown,” Kaine wrote. “That was true even after their electoral wipeout last week, and even with polls showing that many Americans blamed Republicans for the shutdown.”
“You can test somebody’s red line, but at some point it becomes beating your head against a red line,” Kaine said on CNN yesterday. “We need to open government again and then put that healthcare debate front and center.”
POST-SHUTDOWN LINES DRAWN OVER OBAMACARE ABORTION RESTRICTIONS
Good Thursday morning and welcome to Jamie McIntyre’s Daily on Defense, written and compiled by Washington Examiner National Security Senior Writer Jamie McIntyre (@jamiejmcintyre) and edited by Christopher Tremoglie. Email here with tips, suggestions, calendar items, and anything else. Sign up or read current and back issues at DailyonDefense.com. If signing up doesn’t work, shoot us an email and we’ll add you to our list. And be sure to follow me on Threads and/or on X @jamiejmcintyre.
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RUBIO: EU HAS NO SAY IN US WAR ON CARTELS: Secretary of State Marco Rubio left a G7 foreign ministers meeting in Canada, saying European nations “should be thanking us,” rather than questioning the legality of U.S. strikes on suspected drug runners.
The comments came after two senior European diplomats told reporters — but not Rubio — that they had concerns about the ongoing operations that have killed 76 people in 19 strikes. “They didn’t raise it with me. They may have raised it among themselves … but it didn’t come up once in any of the gatherings that we had.”
“The bottom line here is that the President is going to defend the national interests and the national security of the United States, which is under threat by these terrorist organizations,” Rubio told reporters. “I don’t think that the European Union gets to determine what international law is, and what they certainly don’t get to determine is how the United States defends its national security.”
“I do find it interesting that all of these countries want us to send and supply, for example, nuclear-capable Tomahawk missiles to defend Europe, but when the United States positions aircraft carriers in our hemisphere where we live, somehow that’s a problem,” he added.
ZELENSKY’S LATEST HEADACHE: Even before the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the government of Volodymyr Zelensky had been plagued by allegations of corruption. Now his government has been rocked by a new scandal, a major embezzlement and kickback scheme involving the state-owned nuclear power company.
Independent investigators, whose power Zelensky tried to curb earlier this year, uncovered what they say is $100 million in kickbacks in the energy sector linked to a dozen people, including five who have been detained. Zelensky called for the firing of his justice and energy ministers, who were not directly involved in the scandal, and they subsequently submitted their resignations.
“There must be maximum integrity in the energy sector, in absolutely all processes. I support – and the Prime Minister supports – every investigation carried out by law enforcement and anti-corruption officials,” Zelensky said in a video address. “Undermining the state means you will be held accountable. Breaking the law means you will be held accountable.”
Zelensky noted the corruption, uncovered while average Ukrainians are suffering from power outages caused by relentless Russian strikes, is particularly odious. “It is absolutely unacceptable that, amid all this, there are also some schemes in the energy sector.”
TOP UKRAINIAN OFFICIALS REMOVED FROM OFFICE OVER $100 MILLION CORRUPTION SCANDAL
DOES RUSSIA WANT PEACE? In his remarks to reporters yesterday, Rubio was asked directly if Russia was showing any signs it was ready for peace talks.
“Well, we can only go by what we see,” Rubio said, indicating that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s territorial ambitions have not changed. “I think they’ve stated clearly what they want is they want the rest of Donetsk, and obviously the Ukrainians aren’t going to agree to that.”
Rubio said Russia continues to suffer horrific casualty numbers, “losing 7,000 soldiers a week —7,000 dead soldiers a week from Russia,” but is continuing its long-range strikes into Ukraine, “to degrade their electrical grid and try to demoralize the country.”
“They’ve made a demand that Ukraine can’t agree to, and so that’s sort of where we are at this point,” he added.
KYIV MAYOR WARNS UKRAINE HAS ‘HUGE PROBLEMS’ FINDING SOLDIERS AS RUSSIAN ATTACKS ‘JUST KEEP COMING’
THE RUNDOWN:
Washington Examiner: Trump rages at Democrats and the filibuster in signing bill to end government shutdown
Washington Examiner: House looks to remove GOP provision that would allow senators to sue over Biden DOJ investigations
Washington Examiner: Top Ukrainian officials removed from office over $100 million corruption scandal
Washington Examiner: Kyiv mayor warns Ukraine has ‘huge problems’ finding soldiers as Russian attacks ‘just keep coming’
Washington Examiner: Epstein said he advised Russian UN ambassador on how to deal with Trump
Washington Examiner: Venezuela orders major mobilization as US aircraft carrier arrives in nearby waters
Washington Examiner: DOJ memo says US troops safe from prosecution over smuggling boat strikes
Washington Examiner: Trump administration sanctions firms supporting Iran’s military capabilities
Washington Examiner: Israeli president condemns settler mob that burned Palestinian factories and vehicles
Washington Examiner: Fact check: Does Trump need to expand H-1B visas to address lack of ‘talented’ workers?
Washington Examiner: Tom Rogan Opinion: China’s self-defeating Japan beheading threat
The Hill: Rubio Pushes Back on US Allies’ Concerns over Trump’s Alleged Drug Boat Strikes
AP: Top Ukrainian ministers submit their resignations as the country is rocked by a corruption scandal
Financial Times: The elite Russian unit hunting Ukraine’s drone warriors
NBC News: Trump’s Pentagon name change could cost up to $2 billion
Bloomberg: Pentagon Overstated Shutdown Impact on Secretive Missile Program
Breaking Defense: Golden Dome SBIs Will Need to Be Defended from Adversary Attack: Experts
Wall Street Journal: How a Chinese AI Company Worked Around U.S. Rules to Access Nvidia’s Top Chips
DefenseScoop: SOCOM Solicits Industry to Train Commandos to Build and Fly FPV Drones
The War Zone: A-29 Super Tucano Light Attack Aircraft Being Pitched as Drone Hunter
Air & Space Forces Magazine: B-52 Bombers Deploy to Spain, Train with Nordic and Baltic Allies
Defense News: US P-8 Aircraft ‘Hunts’ German, Swedish Subs in Baltic Sea
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Air Force Chief OKs Daily Callsign Nametags, Friday Morale T-Shirts
Aviation Week: GE Pursues Small Turbofan Development for CCA
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Solar Storms Delay Launch Space Force Needs to Certify New Rocket
Task & Purpose: Air Force Families Given the Go-Ahead for Early Christmas Decorations After Outcry
THE CALENDAR:
THURSDAY | NOVEMBER 13
8:30 a.m. 1400 L St. NW— Atlantic Council discussion: “U.S. Policy and the Path to Democracy in Venezuela After Maduro,” with retired Army Gen. Laura Richardson, former commander of U.S. Southern Command; former U.S. Special Representative to Venezuela Elliott Abrams, council on Foreign Relations senior fellow; and John Polga-Hecimovich, associate professor at the U.S. Naval Academy https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/event/us-policy-and-the-path-to-democracy
9 a.m. 1957 E St. NW — George Washington University Elliott School of International Affairs and Aerospace Corporation discussion: “Should the Wolf Amendment Be Repealed?,” focusing on the U.S.-China relationship, with Dean Cheng, nonresident senior fellow, Potomac Institute for Policy Studies; Dan Hart, nonresident senior fellow, Atlantic Council; and Brian Weeden, director of civil and commercial policy at the Aerospace Corporation’s https://calendar.gwu.edu/event/live-debate-should-the-wolf-amendment-be-repealed?
10 a.m. — Center for Strategic and International Studies and National Institute for Industry and Career Advancement virtual discussion: “Meeting the U.S. Defense Imperative: Challenges and Opportunities in the Development of the Defense Industrial Base Workforce,” with Malinda Woods, chair, NIICA Board of Directors, former senior adviser to the Defense Secretary on Supply Chain Resilience and former director, Defense Department’s Title III Defense Production Act; Clay Nagel, senior director of NIICA’s National Center for Skill Based Learning; Jerry McGinn, director, CSIS Center for the Industrial Base and senior fellow, CSIS Defense and Security Department; Sujai Shivakumar, CSIS director and senior fellow of Renewing American Innovation; and Matt Brogoshian, executive director, American Manufacturing Communities Collaborative https://www.csis.org/events/meeting-us-defense-imperative-challenges
1 p.m. — Atlantic Council virtual discussion of a new report, “Minsk in Moscow’s Grip: How Russia Subjugated Belarus Without Annexation,” with author Hanna Liubakova, nonresident fellow, Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center; Giselle Bosse, professor at Maastricht University; Brian Whitmore, nonresident senior fellow, Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center; and Agnia Grigas, nonresident senior fellow, Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center; https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/event/report-launch-how-russia-subjugated-belarus
4:30 p.m. 1521 16th St. NW — Institute of World Politics book discussion: At Sea Against the Soviet Fleet: The Evolution of U.S. Navy Operational Intelligence in the Cold War, with author retired Navy Capt. Bryan Leese https://www.iwp.edu/at-sea-against-the-soviet-fleet
FRIDAY | NOVEMBER 14
8:45 a.m. 2500 Calvert St. NW — American Bar Association discussion: “The AI Arms Race and National Security Law” https://events.americanbar.org/event
MONDAY | NOVEMBER 17
1 p.m. — Foundation for Defense of Democracies in-person and virtual discussion: “Power Under Pressure: The Fight to Protect Taiwan’s Energy Lifelines from Beijing’s AggressionRear Adm. Mark Montgomery, senior director, FDD Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation; Craig Singleton, senior director, FDD China Program, and moderated by Politico China Correspondent Phelim Kine https://www.fdd.org/events/2025/11/17/power-under-pressure
TUESDAY | NOVEMBER 18
10:30 a.m. — U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission releases its 2025 annual report to Congress, “National security implications of the economic relationship between the United States and the People’s Republic of China” https://www.uscc.gov/
WEDNESDAY | NOVEMBER 19
12 p.m. — Association of the U.S. Army webinar: “The history and impact of the Junior ROTC program,” with Arthur Coumbe, author of Soldiers in the Schoolhouse: A Military History of the Junior ROTC https://www.ausa.org/events/noon-report/soldiers-in-the-schoolhouse
THURSDAY | NOVEMBER 20
6 p.m. 1717 K St. NW — America-Eurasia Center in-person event: “Preventing Nuclear War and Determining a New Strategy for Peace,” with Daryl Kimball, executive director, Arms Control Association https://www.eventbrite.com/e/preventing-nuclear-war
FRIDAY | NOVEMBER 21
1 p.m. — Arms Control Association virtual briefing: “Renewed U.S. Nuclear Explosive Testing? Moving From Confounding Nuclear Testing Threats to a Constructive Test Ban Policy,” with Rep. Dina Titus (D-NV), Corey Hinderstein, vice president for studies, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace; and Daryl Kimball, executive director, Arms Control Association https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register
