Day 37 of the government shutdown: FAA to cut flights at 40 major airports, White House announces drug-price agreements, and lawmakers and courts wrestle with major legal and political fights.
FAA, air traffic controllers and travel disruptions
– The FAA ordered airlines to reduce operations at roughly 40 of the nation’s busiest airports because controller staffing and fatigue have deteriorated amid the shutdown. The reduction will phase up to a 10% cut at those airports; airlines were trimming about 4% in schedules for the near-term weekend and planning larger cuts later.
– Airlines are canceling and thinning flights on short notice. The FAA cited surging sick calls among controllers — who have been working without pay for weeks — and rising fatigue as the reason for reducing traffic volume to maintain safety.
– TSA staff sick calls have also led to long security lines at some hubs, with Houston experiencing multi‑hour waits.
– Nick Daniels, president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, warned the shutdown is increasing risk: controllers are stressed, unpaid, and some trainees and mid‑career controllers are resigning. The system is already short roughly 3,800 certified controllers (about 10,800 on duty versus a target of roughly 14,600), and training new controllers takes years.
Senate search for a shutdown off‑ramp; Pelosi won’t seek reelection
– Senators reported some movement toward a procedural vote that could test Democratic and Republican willingness to broaden a funding measure. Moderates have been privately negotiating possible compromises; leadership remains divided and the path to a final deal is still uncertain.
– Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced she will not seek reelection to the House Democratic leadership after this term, signaling the end of an era for a lawmaker who has been central in Congress for decades.
Economic effects: Treasury counsel’s view
– Joe Lavorgna, counselor to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, said the shutdown is already imposing real costs on the economy: the White House CEA estimated losses up to about $15 billion per week, roughly one to two tenths of a percentage point on annualized GDP. The longer the shutdown continues, the more businesses and consumers will feel its effects.
– Layoff announcements have ticked up in some data; services sensitive to travel and discretionary spending could be hurt if disruptions and uncertainty persist. The administration frames the shutdown as political leverage; Lavorgna urged reopening the government to restore confidence.
White House and drug‑price deal with Novo Nordisk
– President Trump unveiled agreements intended to lower prices on GLP‑1 drugs used for obesity and diabetes, including Ozempic and Wegovy, to be offered on a new website. Novo Nordisk CEO Mike Doustdar told Major Garrett the company held constructive talks with the administration to expand access and that Novo has built global capacity to meet demand.
– Novo said lower prices should broaden access to millions suffering from obesity; the company argued safety concerns over knockoff injectables and reliance on raw APIs from abroad remain issues. Doustdar also said a Wegovy oral pill will be available after FDA approval, offering the efficacy of injectables in pill form.
– The CEO emphasized these medications complement — not replace — lifestyle changes, and said the company is ready to scale.
Tariff authority at the Supreme Court; Oregon AG discusses case and Portland guard question
– The Supreme Court heard a challenge by 12 state attorneys general, including Oregon, over whether the president exceeded authority by using emergency powers to impose broad tariffs. Oregon AG Dan Rayfield argued the president’s actions effectively impose large taxes and raised separation‑of‑powers concerns; he warned against ceding congressional taxing authority to the executive.
– The stakes include whether tariffs imposed via emergency declarations are lawful and whether Congress’s delegation to the president has been exceeded. Rayfield also discussed a separate fight over federalizing National Guard forces in Portland, where he argued there was no valid basis for federalization and the courts should address the facts on the ground.
– Rayfield described both the tariff case and the National Guard deployment as tests of constitutional limits on executive power.
Courtroom note: sandwich‑throwing defendant acquitted
– In D.C., a man charged with throwing a sandwich at a federal agent was acquitted of misdemeanor assault. Prosecutors argued the act was criminal; the defense urged selective or vindictive prosecution. Jurors found the behavior did not meet the threshold for the federal misdemeanor assault charge, reflecting some juror and grand‑jury skepticism about aggressive federal charging in some protest‑related incidents.
Politics: off‑cycle elections, progressive energy, and reactions
– Off‑cycle results in Virginia and New Jersey showed Democrats holding or flipping key seats with messages focused on affordability, especially utility and health‑care costs. Moderates who ran on pocketbook issues fared well; strategists cautioned Republicans not to overread the results but the White House acknowledged voters are focused on the economy and affordability.
– Polling found many Latino voters saying it is a bad time to be Latino in the U.S., influenced by immigration operations and aggressive enforcement actions, and economic concerns remain central to their voting calculus.
– In New York, Zohran Mamdani’s mayoral win prompted inflammatory public comments from President Trump; local leaders and courts previously have pushed back when the federal government has threatened to withhold funding or intervene in city affairs.
Other notes
– Market reaction: U.S. stock indexes fell amid shutdown worries and economic uncertainty.
– Senate and rank‑and‑file senators continue hallway conversations; the possibility of test procedural votes remains in play as some senators search for an off‑ramp that could pair short‑term funding with more lasting appropriations language.
– As the holiday travel season approaches, reduced FAA capacity and controller absenteeism could disrupt Thanksgiving travel for families if the shutdown continues.
This program — The Takeout with Major Garrett — covered the airline disruptions, the administration’s drug‑price announcements and Novo Nordisk’s response, the Supreme Court tariff case and state challenges, ongoing shutdown negotiations, and reactions to recent local and off‑cycle election results.
