Zach Schermele
@zachschermele.bsky.social
congressional reporter @usatoday.com
tips? email me: zschermele@usatoday.com
reposts ≠ endorsements
🏳🌈
tips? email me: zschermele@usatoday.com
reposts ≠ endorsements
🏳🌈
Reposted by Zach Schermele
BREAKING: Senate votes to end longest-ever government shutdown.
It must now go to the House, where passage is expected by Wednesday.
It must now go to the House, where passage is expected by Wednesday.
Government shutdown live updates. Senate passes deal to end funding fight
On a 60-40 vote, the Senate sent the legislation to the other chamber, where it will likely pass.
bit.ly
November 11, 2025 at 2:33 AM
BREAKING: Senate votes to end longest-ever government shutdown.
It must now go to the House, where passage is expected by Wednesday.
It must now go to the House, where passage is expected by Wednesday.
Reposted by Zach Schermele
BREAKING: Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said that there will be a 10% reduction in flights at 40 major airports if the government shutdown continues.
Air traffic cuts coming to major airports if shutdown continues, Duffy says
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said that there will be a 10% reduction in flights at 40 major airports if the government shutdown continues.
bit.ly
November 5, 2025 at 9:46 PM
BREAKING: Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said that there will be a 10% reduction in flights at 40 major airports if the government shutdown continues.
I joined USA TODAY’s podcast The Excerpt today for a special episode about where things stand with the shutdown on the Hill, where the vibes are shifting ever so slightly as several pain points are putting increasing pressure on lawmakers to turn the lights back on.
youtu.be/Ya-wkeGxpT4?...
youtu.be/Ya-wkeGxpT4?...
Government shutdown enters week five with no end in sight | The Excerpt
YouTube video by USA TODAY
youtu.be
October 29, 2025 at 11:00 PM
I joined USA TODAY’s podcast The Excerpt today for a special episode about where things stand with the shutdown on the Hill, where the vibes are shifting ever so slightly as several pain points are putting increasing pressure on lawmakers to turn the lights back on.
youtu.be/Ya-wkeGxpT4?...
youtu.be/Ya-wkeGxpT4?...
New -> In response to the impending expiration of SNAP funding, the Blackfeet Nation in MT says it’s culling 18 bison from the reservation’s herd: “The processed meat will be distributed directly to community members to help sustain food access during this period of uncertainty.”
October 25, 2025 at 5:04 PM
New -> In response to the impending expiration of SNAP funding, the Blackfeet Nation in MT says it’s culling 18 bison from the reservation’s herd: “The processed meat will be distributed directly to community members to help sustain food access during this period of uncertainty.”
NEW: Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton was scammed out of more than $4,300 in a credit card fraud incident at her D.C. home yesterday, per a police report.
October 24, 2025 at 8:21 PM
NEW: Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton was scammed out of more than $4,300 in a credit card fraud incident at her D.C. home yesterday, per a police report.
"I want to untie my shoelace because standing in one place for this much time, well, made my shoes a little tight," Merkley said at 2:45 a.m. "That feels a little better. I don't recommend standing through the night and talking. Not a healthy pursuit."
www.usatoday.com/story/news/p...
www.usatoday.com/story/news/p...
Oregon Democrat speaks on the Senate floor all night long to protest Trump
Oregon's Jeff Merkley spoke on the Senate floor all night long to protest the Trump administration. His speech has lasted 16 hours (and counting).
www.usatoday.com
October 22, 2025 at 4:08 PM
"I want to untie my shoelace because standing in one place for this much time, well, made my shoes a little tight," Merkley said at 2:45 a.m. "That feels a little better. I don't recommend standing through the night and talking. Not a healthy pursuit."
www.usatoday.com/story/news/p...
www.usatoday.com/story/news/p...
Reposted by Zach Schermele
October 22, 2025 at 1:29 AM
How thieves stole treasures worth millions from the Louvre Museum in just seven minutes
www.usatoday.com/story/graphi...
www.usatoday.com/story/graphi...
October 21, 2025 at 7:29 PM
How thieves stole treasures worth millions from the Louvre Museum in just seven minutes
www.usatoday.com/story/graphi...
www.usatoday.com/story/graphi...
October 20, 2025 at 4:14 PM
NEW: A federal judge today temporarily paused the Education Department's layoffs of nearly everyone in its special ed division.
Judge Susan Illston in the Northern District of California issued the ruling, which applies to thousands of other RIFs, too.
Read more: www.usatoday.com/story/news/e...
Judge Susan Illston in the Northern District of California issued the ruling, which applies to thousands of other RIFs, too.
Read more: www.usatoday.com/story/news/e...
Judge temporarily reverses Trump's special education layoffs
The firings were part of a broad swath of shutdown-related terminations issued by the White House on Friday, Oct. 10.
www.usatoday.com
October 15, 2025 at 9:03 PM
NEW: A federal judge today temporarily paused the Education Department's layoffs of nearly everyone in its special ed division.
Judge Susan Illston in the Northern District of California issued the ruling, which applies to thousands of other RIFs, too.
Read more: www.usatoday.com/story/news/e...
Judge Susan Illston in the Northern District of California issued the ruling, which applies to thousands of other RIFs, too.
Read more: www.usatoday.com/story/news/e...
NEW: In a court hearing in California happening now, District Judge Susan Illston said she's likely to temporarily pause the mass layoffs of more than 4,000 federal employees that the White House started Friday.
"What's being done here is both illegal and is an excess of authority," she said.
"What's being done here is both illegal and is an excess of authority," she said.
October 15, 2025 at 6:01 PM
NEW: In a court hearing in California happening now, District Judge Susan Illston said she's likely to temporarily pause the mass layoffs of more than 4,000 federal employees that the White House started Friday.
"What's being done here is both illegal and is an excess of authority," she said.
"What's being done here is both illegal and is an excess of authority," she said.
Read her full statement here:
October 15, 2025 at 5:25 PM
Read her full statement here:
NEW: Linda McMahon breaks her silence after wiping out her agency's special ed division with layoffs.
"No education funding is impacted by the RIF, including funding for special education," she said in a statement.
Yet almost all the people who historically oversaw that funding have been fired.
"No education funding is impacted by the RIF, including funding for special education," she said in a statement.
Yet almost all the people who historically oversaw that funding have been fired.
October 15, 2025 at 5:23 PM
NEW: Linda McMahon breaks her silence after wiping out her agency's special ed division with layoffs.
"No education funding is impacted by the RIF, including funding for special education," she said in a statement.
Yet almost all the people who historically oversaw that funding have been fired.
"No education funding is impacted by the RIF, including funding for special education," she said in a statement.
Yet almost all the people who historically oversaw that funding have been fired.
We've got a comprehensive look this morning at seven key pieces of the shutdown puzzle, and whether they could get us any closer to an end.
Check it out here:
www.usatoday.com/story/news/p...
Check it out here:
www.usatoday.com/story/news/p...
7 things to watch for signs of the government shutdown ending
As the shutdown stretches into its third week, no single off-ramp seems certain. But many factors could shift lawmakers' calculus over time.
www.usatoday.com
October 15, 2025 at 2:13 PM
We've got a comprehensive look this morning at seven key pieces of the shutdown puzzle, and whether they could get us any closer to an end.
Check it out here:
www.usatoday.com/story/news/p...
Check it out here:
www.usatoday.com/story/news/p...
October 14, 2025 at 11:55 PM
I hopped on today’s episode of USA TODAY’s podcast The Excerpt to break down our recent reporting on the government shutdown and how it intersects with the latest Education Department layoffs.
Listen here: art19.com/shows/5-thin...
Listen here: art19.com/shows/5-thin...
A triumphant Trump basks in Mideast praise
USA TODAY Washington Bureau Chief Susan Page puts President Donald Trump's role in recent Israel-Hamas peace proceedings in context.
USA TODAY Congressional Reporter Zach Schermele has the government...
art19.com
October 14, 2025 at 11:53 PM
I hopped on today’s episode of USA TODAY’s podcast The Excerpt to break down our recent reporting on the government shutdown and how it intersects with the latest Education Department layoffs.
Listen here: art19.com/shows/5-thin...
Listen here: art19.com/shows/5-thin...
NEW: Check out this explainer on the Education Dept.'s layoffs of special ed staff ->
TLDR, as one person put it: "This is a time when parents have to really saddle up & be ready to be the most aggressive advocate for their child that they've ever been."
www.usatoday.com/story/news/e...
TLDR, as one person put it: "This is a time when parents have to really saddle up & be ready to be the most aggressive advocate for their child that they've ever been."
www.usatoday.com/story/news/e...
Education Dept. layoffs threaten special ed system, advocates warn
The Education Department laid off almost everyone in its special education division. From 504 plans to IEPs, here's how the firings could impact you.
www.usatoday.com
October 13, 2025 at 9:04 PM
NEW: Check out this explainer on the Education Dept.'s layoffs of special ed staff ->
TLDR, as one person put it: "This is a time when parents have to really saddle up & be ready to be the most aggressive advocate for their child that they've ever been."
www.usatoday.com/story/news/e...
TLDR, as one person put it: "This is a time when parents have to really saddle up & be ready to be the most aggressive advocate for their child that they've ever been."
www.usatoday.com/story/news/e...
"This is a time when parents have to really saddle up and be ready to be the most aggressive advocate for their child that they've ever been."
—Katy Neas, former deputy assistant secretary in the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services
—Katy Neas, former deputy assistant secretary in the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services
October 13, 2025 at 6:19 PM
"This is a time when parents have to really saddle up and be ready to be the most aggressive advocate for their child that they've ever been."
—Katy Neas, former deputy assistant secretary in the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services
—Katy Neas, former deputy assistant secretary in the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services
Reposted by Zach Schermele
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October 12, 2025 at 11:39 PM
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NEW: These are all the Education Dept. offices that staffers and managers say have been impacted by layoffs since Friday, according to the union for the agency’s employees.
They include workers that supported HBCUs, tribal colleges, charter schools, civil rights reviews, special ed & more.
They include workers that supported HBCUs, tribal colleges, charter schools, civil rights reviews, special ed & more.
October 12, 2025 at 11:30 PM
NEW: These are all the Education Dept. offices that staffers and managers say have been impacted by layoffs since Friday, according to the union for the agency’s employees.
They include workers that supported HBCUs, tribal colleges, charter schools, civil rights reviews, special ed & more.
They include workers that supported HBCUs, tribal colleges, charter schools, civil rights reviews, special ed & more.