APPLENEWS - STORY ADD
Government shutdown updates: Leavitt says Trump exploring cutting aid to Portland
"We will not fund states that allow anarchy," she told reporters.
The federal government remains closed amid a bitter impasse on Capitol Hill over competing congressional spending bills.
President Donald Trump and Republicans have cast blame for the shutdown on Democrats' health care demands, while Democrats insist Republicans need to negotiate.
The Trump administration has threatened mass layoffs of some federal workers during the shutdown.
Key Headlines
Trump on Russia-Ukraine war: 'I think we'll get that done'
President Donald Trump, while speaking to top-ranking generals and admirals, discussed the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, saying it is the worst war since World War II.
"I think we'll get that done," Trump said on Tuesday.
He added that he is "so disappointed" in Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying Putin could have ended the war "in a week."
Trump says US was under an 'invasion from within'
President Donald Trump claimed that the United States was under an "invasion from within" before he began his second term in office.
He accused the Biden administration of allowing people from "all over the world to come into our country," calling it "totally unmatched, unvetted and unchecked."
He also mentioned his calls to send troops to Portland, Oregon, and Washington, D.C., saying there was a "violence from within."
DOD's purpose is 'not to protect anyone's feelings' but to 'protect our country': Trump
Trump told top-ranking generals and admirals that the Department of Defense's purpose is "not to protect anyone's feelings" but to "protect our country," saying everyone is "based on merit."
"We're not going to have someone take your place for political reasons. We take the people who are going to do the best job," Trump said.
His comments echoed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's earlier remarks discussing the department's new physical and grooming standards.
Trump pivots to violence in inner cities
During Trump's speech to top-ranking generals and admirals, he pivoted his conversation several times to discuss the alleged violence in inner cities, saying firemen and police officers have "people shooting at them."
Trump comments come after he directed troops to Portland, Oregon, because of what he alleged were threats from domestic terrorists, and has threatened to send them to others.