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Saturday

Inside the workshop where presidential flags are lovingly made, mostly by immigrants

The presidential flag (center) is hand embroidered. Caroline Gutman for NPR hide caption

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Caroline Gutman for NPR

The Picture Show

Inside the workshop where presidential flags are lovingly made, mostly by immigrants

Philadelphia – city of brotherly love, birthplace of American democracy. And the only place in the world where presidential flags are made.

Inside the workshop where presidential flags are lovingly made, mostly by immigrants

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Janet Yellen says a government shutdown would add to risks of a recession

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen speaks at an event on the one-year launch of the Pandemic Fund, in New York City on Sept. 19. Bryan R. Smith/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Bryan R. Smith/AFP via Getty Images

Economy

Janet Yellen says a government shutdown would add to risks of a recession

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is sounding the alarm about the damage a government shutdown could do to the U.S. economy. "It's really reckless and will impose immediate harm," Yellen told NPR.

Some states pick up the tab to keep national parks open during federal shutdown

Tourists board a shuttle into Zion National Park, in Utah. The state government will pay for the park to stay open during the government shutdown, in order to keep tourist revenue flowing to nearby towns. David Condos/KUER hide caption

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David Condos/KUER

National

Some states pick up the tab to keep national parks open during federal shutdown

KUER

Don't cancel that camping trip just yet: Utah, Arizona, and Colorado state governments will foot the bill to keep some national parks open — and tourist dollars flowing — during the shutdown.

D.C. has a lot of federal workers. A government shutdown would have big impacts

A stoplight is seen in front of the dome of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Thursday. The government has begun to inform workers of an impending shutdown that could see millions of federal employees and military personnel sent home or working without pay. Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images

D.C. has a lot of federal workers. A government shutdown would have big impacts

The Washington, D.C., region is home to about 400,000 federal employees, plus members of the military and government contractors. In a government shutdown, they face no pay and lots of uncertainty.

D.C. has a lot of federal workers. A government shutdown would have big impacts

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How the far right could remove McCarthy and why his fate could be in Democrats' hands

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., pauses as he addresses reporters about efforts to pass appropriations bills and avert a government shutdown at the U.S. Capitol on Friday. He is joined at right by House Homeland Security Chair Mark Green, R-Tenn., and Rep. Monica de la Cruz, R-Texas. J. Scott Applewhite/AP hide caption

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J. Scott Applewhite/AP

How the far right could remove McCarthy and why his fate could be in Democrats' hands

At least one House Republican, Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz, is publicly threatening to offer a resolution to try to remove the speaker. Here's how that procedural motion would work.

Friday

First Trump co-defendant pleads guilty in the Georgia election interference case

In this image made from video from Judge Scott McAfee's virtual Zoom hearing, Scott Graham Hall, left, stands with his attorney Jeff Weiner, right, in Superior Court of Fulton County before Judge McAfee on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in Atlanta. USA Today via AP, Pool hide caption

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USA Today via AP, Pool

National

First Trump co-defendant pleads guilty in the Georgia election interference case

A bail bondsman charged alongside former President Donald Trump and 17 others in the Georgia election case pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges, becoming the first defendant to accept a plea deal.

What a shutdown would mean for student loan borrowers
Janice Chang for NPR

The Student Loan Restart

What a shutdown would mean for student loan borrowers

October loan payments will still be due, but an extended shutdown could impact customer service.

What a shutdown would mean for student loan borrowers

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House GOP hardliners block spending stopgap with shutdown looming

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy continues to battle a group of conservatives who oppose any short-term spending bill ahead of a likely government shutdown. Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images

House GOP hardliners block spending stopgap with shutdown looming

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy rejected a bipartisan Senate proposal to keep agencies funded through November 17 and instead moved a GOP bill that linked another month of spending with border security.

What's behind the debate to re-authorize PEPFAR, the widely hailed anti-HIV effort?

PEPFAR, the U.S. multibillion dollar effort to fight HIV/AIDS, funds organizations such as the Coptic hospital in Nairobi, Kenya. Brent Stirton/Getty Images hide caption

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Brent Stirton/Getty Images

Goats and Soda

What's behind the debate to re-authorize PEPFAR, the widely hailed anti-HIV effort?

The program launched by President George W. Bush is credited with saving 25 million lives. Some in Congress want this year's reauthorization tied to language that PEPFAR will not "promote abortion."

From California to Capitol Hill, tributes to Dianne Feinstein flood in after her death

Senator Dianne Feinstein, a Democrat from California who was first elected in 1992, died Thursday at the age of 90. Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

From California to Capitol Hill, tributes to Dianne Feinstein flood in after her death

Leaders in the House and the Senate paused from the race to avert a government shutdown to remember Feinstein, the California Democrat who was longest-serving woman to ever sit in the U.S. Senate.

Dianne Feinstein, longest serving woman in the Senate, has died at 90

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., speaks during a hearing of the Senate Judiciary Committee in July 2022. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images hide caption

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Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

Obituaries

Dianne Feinstein, longest serving woman in the Senate, has died at 90

KQED

Feinstein suddenly became the mayor of San Francisco when two other officials were assassinated. Later she was elected to the U.S. Senate after male senators grilled Anita Hill in public hearings.

Dianne Feinstein, longest serving woman in the Senate, has died at 90

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Up First briefing: Effects of a shutdown; health workers may strike; Maui conspiracies

Government funding runs out at the end of the day on Sept. 30, meaning many federal government services will halt until funding resumes. Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images

Up First Newsletter

Up First briefing: Effects of a shutdown; health workers may strike; Maui conspiracies

What will stay open if the government shuts down? Kaiser Permanente's health care workers near a nationwide walkout. How conspiracy theories spread in the wake of wildfires in Hawaii.

Thursday

The White House chief of staff says it's on House Republicans to avert a shutdown

President Biden's chief of staff Jeff Zients, seen here in the Oval Office on May 16, 2023, is working with federal agencies to brace for a government shutdown this weekend. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images hide caption

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Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

The White House chief of staff says it's on House Republicans to avert a shutdown

Jeff Zients has been getting the White House prepared for the first government shutdown of the Biden administration. Here's what the chief of staff told NPR about it.

The White House chief of staff says it's on House Republicans to avert a shutdown

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