It’s Sunday night, and with an extraordinarily busy and consequential week ahead, I want to take a moment to provide you with a clear update on what to expect—and to acknowledge the weight of the moment we are all living through together. As I do, I want to begin by stating that the Trump Administration has officially ordered National Guard troops to Portland, one day after Trump’s threat to use “full force” against American citizens.

We are living through unprecedented times. This administration isn’t just governing—it’s weaponizing power, dismantling opposition, and silencing critics. Law firms. Media outlets. Nonprofits. Political opponents. No one is off-limits.

I know many of you feel anxious—even afraid. So do I. But here’s the truth: retreat is not an option. Silence is surrender. And I will not be silenced. I answer only to you, never to corporate executives. Stand with me. Subscribe today to keep this work alive.

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We now stand just two days away from a potential government shutdown. Tomorrow, congressional leaders from both the House and Senate—Democrats included—are scheduled to meet with President Trump in the Oval Office. But let’s be clear: as things stand, every signal points toward a shutdown beginning at 11:59 PM on Wednesday, September 30th. If this happens, the Trump Administration has already laid the groundwork for sweeping mass firings across government agencies. Yes, these actions will be challenged in the courts. No, this will not be an easy period for anyone, especially the millions of federal employees and their families who rely on stability.

If the shutdown begins, Americans should expect significant disruption to critical government functions: longer wait times at airports, closed national parks, delays in processing essential services, and even interruptions in benefits and payments for military families. What remains unclear is how long this shutdown could last, and what additional steps the administration might take in the days ahead.

On a separate but equally consequential note, this week we also expect to learn whether the Supreme Court will take up Ghislaine Maxwell’s appeal—a decision that could reopen painful questions, reframe ongoing legal debates, and dominate headlines in the days ahead.

On Tuesday, Donald Trump and Pete Hegseth will convene with military leaders from across the globe at Quantico, Virginia—placing the United States’ senior military leadership in one place, at one time. This is no ordinary meeting. It comes at a moment when the president has openly threatened to use the military against American citizens, particularly in Portland. What happens behind closed doors at this meeting may not be fully disclosed, but its timing and optics should not be underestimated.

Then comes Wednesday, the shutdown deadline. By 11:59 PM, the government either remains funded—or much of it grinds to a halt. Adding to this, a personal programming note: from Wednesday at 6:30 PM EST until Thursday evening around 7 PM EST, I will be fully offline in observance of Yom Kippur.

This is the one day of the year where I fully disconnect—no phone, no email, no electronic communication. That said, I will ensure that you receive updates: a pre-recorded interview, an important one, will be released Thursday morning, and the regular evening update will be shifted to 8 PM to cover the entire day’s events. However, please understand that if something major happens while I am offline, the earliest you may hear from me directly will be in that evening update.

Looking beyond the immediate crisis, we are also preparing for the swearing-in of Adelita Grijalva—pending further delays from Mike Johnson—as well as the No Kings Day protest on October 18th, which promises to be a defining moment of public demonstration and dissent.

Let me leave you with this.

Moments like this are tests—not just of our politics, but of our character, our courage, and our willingness to stand together in the face of fear. History has shown us, time and again, that authoritarians thrive when people fall silent. They count on exhaustion. They count on division. They count on our belief that nothing we do will matter. And yet, time and again, ordinary people have proven them wrong. Civil rights were won not because people stayed quiet, but because they spoke up, marched, voted, and demanded to be heard. Democracy survived its darkest chapters because citizens refused to give up on it.

So let me be absolutely clear: we are not powerless. We are not voiceless. And we are not alone. Every message we share, every action we take, every time we choose courage over fear—we chip away at the structures of oppression and remind those in power that this country does not belong to one man, one party, or one ideology. It belongs to all of us.

Yes, this will be hard. Yes, there will be setbacks. But we cannot let fear dictate our future. We must carry forward with resolve. We must protect one another, lift one another up, and remind each other why this fight matters. Because it does matter—not just for us, but for generations to come.

I promise you this: I will not stop. I will not waver. I will not cower in the face of intimidation. And I ask you to make the same promise to yourself and to one another. Promise that you will not allow despair to win. Promise that you will keep showing up, even when it’s difficult. Promise that you will keep speaking truth, even when it feels like no one is listening.

Together, we will endure this moment. Together, we will rise to meet it. And together, we will prove—once again—that the voices of the people are stronger than the threats of any administration. We have been tested before, and we will be tested again. But we will not break. We will not bend. And we will not stop fighting for the future we know is possible.

That is my promise to you. And that must be our promise to each other.