INTERNACIONAL
Ominous red and orange skies had Capitol Hill take notice as shutdown loomed
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«The sky is burnin’» – Burnin’ Sky by Bad Company, 1977
Humans have looked for omens since the days when they wore loin cloths and watched shadows dance on cave walls from a crudely constructed fire.
Ancient peoples believed celestial events like an eclipse, a full moon or even a violent storm augur signs of a looming disaster.
But let’s face it. Contemporary humans really aren’t that much different from our ancestors.
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The sunset lit the skies over Washington, D.C., with startling reds and oranges on Monday before a government shutdown took effect later in the week.
That’s why much of official Washington took note of the dramatic sunset visible from the U.S. Capitol and National Mall last Monday evening, just one day before the government shutdown.
On that night, as Paul Rodgers of Bad Company would sing, «The sky is burnin.’»
The bluff which doubles as Capitol Hill offers a vista to view stunning sunsets. The setting sun frequently backlights ridges of clouds, It coats them with shades of magenta, plum and lilac. It’s all visible as you stare westward from the Capitol, toward the horizon, stretching beyond the Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial and Potomac River.
I’ve witnessed some breathtaking sunsets from Capitol Hill over the years. But last Monday’s sunset was was different.
This was a confident sunset. It knew it was a good one, producing hues I’ve never before observed from my perch on Capitol Hill. This sunset didn’t just feature bands of orange light, diffused through the clouds like an oversized laser tag display. The colors on this one simply drenched the cloud bank with a palette of dark pink, radiant strawberry and dragon fruit.
The chalky obelisk of the Washington Monument punctured the sky midway down the National Mall. The Monument in the foreground completed the tableau. The spiky tower served as a contrast to the soft glow of the clouds, heated by the sun, 93 million miles in the distance.
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This sunset was a bombshell. One that you see only few times in a lifetime – if you’re lucky. This sunset outclassed regularly gems which are seen on Capitol Hill in the fall and winter.
But there was something else about this sunset.
Despite its elegance and swagger, there was something foreboding. It was the warm reds and oranges. The sunsets here are never quite that color. And perhaps the fact that one rarely sees a display as striking as this one was all that was needed to make the entire production disturbing.
Frankly, contemporary humans aren’t that much more sophisticated than the cavemen trying to decode what a full moon or a solar eclipse foretell. Many inside the Beltway who witnessed the special sunset. divined meaning into it. They knew that a government shutdown loomed on Tuesday night heading into Wednesday. And so, such a fascinating, yet ominous sky presaged what fate would befall Congress and the federal workforce.
It would be hard to rival Monday night’s sunset. But believe it or not, Tuesday’s sunset lapped its predecessor. Reporters and photographers were assembled in the Senate Radio/TV Gallery awaiting separate press conferences by Republican and Democratic leaders – just hours before the scheduled government shutdown. One story below in the Capitol, the Senate blocked two competing plans to avert a shutdown. That’s right when the Tuesday sunset raised the curtain on its show.
This sunset wasn’t as red as its predecessor. But more tangelo. There was a presence of creamsicle with a dash of peach parfait. The clouds separated in the west, just barely allowing a hint of blue sky and white clouds to sneak through. But everything close to the surface was an orange foam. Softer than the one before. Kind of like a whipped dessert or mousse.
While the striking colors of the evening sky over Washington, D.C. appeared ominous to some, Senate majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., commented on the «simplicity» of a sunset. (Chad Pergram/Fox News)
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Surely a sunset as fulfilling as this one would also envisage what’s ahead in Washington – even though everyone knew the government was about to shut down in a matter of hours.
But Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., suggested there was no soothsaying in the sunset.
«There is nothing like the simplicity of a sunset,» said Thune as he began his press conference.
Sometimes the evening wonder of a sunset is just that: a sunset. No need to read prophecy about government shutdowns into something which happens nightly, spectacular or not.
In fact, there are meteorological reasons for the recent dynamic sunsets in Washington. They have nothing to do with a lapse in appropriations, Obamacare subsidies or Budget Director Russ Vought.
Hurricane Imelda was a Category 2 storm spinning through the empty Atlantic. The cyclone was hundreds of miles off the eastern seaboard. But Imelda played a role in the special sunsets.
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High clouds from Imelda drifted well north of the storm in the mid-Atlantic. These are clouds which reach 20,000 feet or higher. They carry ice crystals instead of water, thanks to their altitude.
The clouds refract the sunlight, scattering shorter wavelength colors like blue, green and purple. But the ice crystals expand longer color wavelengths like orange, yellow and red. That’s the phenomenon which triggers these exceptional sunsets. Not lapses in appropriations, arguing about spending or the government shutdown.
But perhaps there’s something even more influential when it comes to these electrifying sunsets and their pops of orange: Taylor Swift.
Yep.
Taylor Swift just dropped her new album «Life of a Showgirl.» Symbolism and metaphor are the quintessence of Swift. And the so-called «Portofino orange glitter» shade is what defines the record as Swift enters her «orange» phase – leaving behind the «Eras» era.
Don’t forget that on the Eras Tour, Swift would always exit the stage through an orange door.
Hmm.
Since the album came out, retailers see spikes in the sales of orange blouses, skirts, sweaters and handbags – thanks to Swift’s sway. This is why Dunkin’ Donuts and United Airlines tried to appeal to Swifties by throwing a dollop of orange onto their social media feeds.
«We looked like fire,» Swift sings in the track Eldest Daughter on the new album.
Just like the recent sunsets.
Few on the planet are as influential as Swift. But that’s with culture. But surely Swift – as powerful as she is – couldn’t have something to do with the sunsets, right? These are all about ice crystals and hurricanes, right?
You never know.
But if Taylor Swift is so formidable presiding over the colors of a sunset, perhaps she’s the only one who could end the government shutdown.
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And if she does, she’ll likely escort it out through an orange door.
Just like the burnin’ sky sunsets visible lately in Washington.
government shutdown,senate,house of representatives politics,congress
INTERNACIONAL
Tensión con Estados Unidos: al ritmo del reguetón, Nicolás Maduro convoca una marcha de milicianos para desmentir que sea un narcotraficante
Las calles de Caracas estarán parcialmente bloqueadas esta semana hasta el jueves por la marcha que ha convocado el régimen chavista para defender a Nicolás Maduro de las acusaciones de que lidera organizaciones de narcotraficantes y criminales, mientras escala la tensión por las amenazas de que la Embajada de Estados Unidos en Caracas sufriría atentados terroristas.
La insólita marcha de cuatro días ha sorprendido a propios y extraños por la instalación de una tarima oficialista frente a la sede de las Naciones Unidas, interrumpiendo el tránsito en la capital venezolana por el corte de la Avenida Francisco de Miranda, que es la principal arteria vial que enlaza la ciudad del este al oeste.
Más que un acto político, la marcha parece un festival musical en el que bandas pocos conocidas prodigan y hacen propaganda a favor de Maduro al ritmo de reguetón mientras los milicianos bailan con fusil en mano y se hacen fotografiar para su álbum familiar.
El tema de la convocatoria es para protestar la presencia de la flota aeronaval de Estados Unidos desplegada en el Caribe frente a las costas de Venezuela y desmentir que Maduro lidere el Cártel de los Soles y el Tren de Aragua, según acusaciones del presidente Donal Trump y el secretario de Estado Marco Rubio.
Los pocos que acudieron al primer día de la marcha dijeron que “estaban contra el imperialismo. Nuestro presidente Maduro no es narco. Queremos que Estados Unidos quite los barcos en el Caribe”, dijo una mujer de unos 60 años, que lucía orgullosa un uniforme militar.
«Queremos decirle al señor Trump que saque sus barcos, su poco de baterías que tiene aquí, porque este no es un país narcotraficante, es un país que combate al narcotráfico», dijo un trabajador aeroportuario de 62 años.
Otra caraqueña de unos 30 años, exclamó a Clarín: “Esto es una locura, los chavistas están quemando los últimos cartuchos o días que le quedan con esta marchita. Se sienten perdidos. Ya falta poco. Los que acuden al llamado son todos empleados de los ministerios”.
En las barreras policiales un agente agregó: “Qué le voy a decir, no hay gente, esta marcha está vacía, siempre lo mismo, tenemos que trabajar sea el gobierno de izquierda o de derecha”, dijo el uniformado con cara de aburrimiento.
En la solitaria tarima con funcionarios vestidos de negro sonaba un reguetón elogiando a Maduro. En algunas pancartas se leía: “No somos narcoestado, somos bolivarianos”, mientras las ancianas empuñaban unos fusiles viejos sin balas.
“Aprendí a disparar al enemigo interno”, repetía otra mujer mientras bailaba al compás de la banda musical y se tomaba las fotos para su álbum familiar.
El bloqueo de las calles de Caracas durará hasta el jueves para reclutar a civiles que quieran defender a Maduro.
La embajada de EE.UU.
Este lunes el régimen de Maduro también alertó que la Embajada de Estados Unidos en Caracas sería atacada con explosivos por un supuesto “grupo terrorista local” de derecha, lo que aumentó la escalada de tensión.
El que dio el pitazo del supuesto atentado en la sede diplomática de EE.UU. fue Jorge Rodríguez, presidente de la chavista Asamblea Nacional en un comunicado que publicó en su cuenta de X, alertando sobre la amenaza de “extremistas” para colocar “explosivos” en su Embajada en Caracas.
En su programa televisivo, Maduro dijo que un «grupo terrorista local» planeaba colocar una carga explosiva para una «operación de falsa bandera» que buscaba «comenzar una escalada de enfrentamiento».
«Hubo dos fuentes, una fuente de carácter nacional y una fuente de carácter internacional, que se le hizo seguimiento y coincidió con la posibilidad de que un grupo terrorista local colocara una carga explosiva en la embajada de Estados Unidos en Caracas», afirmó. «Era una acción de provocación», aseguró.
Maduro dijo que Rodríguez informó la tarde del lunes «oficialmente al gobierno de Estados Unidos» sobre «los responsables de la preparación de este ataque terrorista» y señaló que buscan a algunos de los responsables en Venezuela.
Esta amenaza se produce después que el gobierno de Donald Trump amenazara con explotar los centros del narcotráfico en Venezuela y fuera autorizado por el Congreso de Washington.
La Embajada de EE.UU. en Caracas, una fortaleza construida en Valle Arriba al sureste de la ciudad, está fuertemente custodiada por vehículos oficiales de inteligencia militar, policial y seguridad. Las relaciones diplomáticas entre ambos países están rotas desde enero de 2019 porque el gobierno de EE.UU. reconoció a Juan Guaidó como presidente interino de Venezuela.
Desde hace dos semanas circula un fuerte rumor de que María Corina Machado, que hoy cumple 58 años, se encuentra refugiada allí. Es el propio ministro de Interior y Justicia, Diosdado Cabello, quien ha insinuado que Machado se refugia en esa sede diplomática. «Ella está en Valle Arriba, en una casa grandota, que dicen que no hay nadie, pero sí hay (…) pero no le vayan a decir a nadie porque es secreto«, ironizó Cabello el pasado 17 de septiembre.
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A South Korean climber has died in Nepal after getting caught in a powerful storm while attempting to summit a Himalayan peak just south of Mount Everest. Meanwhile, hundreds of hikers have begun evacuating after severe weather left them stranded across the region.
The Nepal Mountaineering Association confirmed the South Korean climber’s death Tuesday. He had been reported missing over the weekend near the summit of Mera Peak, a 21,250-foot mountain in the northern Himalayas. Other climbers on the mountain have been reported safe.
The tragedy unfolded as heavy snow and rain stranded hundreds of hikers near Everest. One hiker, identified only by the surname Dong, told China’s Xiaoxiang Morning Herald he had never seen such a severe storm, describing intense snowfall and lightning.
By late Monday, 350 people had descended safely, while more than 200 others were being guided to a designated meeting point, according to Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.
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In this photo taken Oct. 4, 2025 and released by Lingsuiye, villagers with their oxen and horses ascend the mountain during rescue efforts to reach hundreds of hikers trapped by heavy snow at tourist campsites on a slope of Mount Everest in Tibet on Sunday, Oct. 5, 2025. (Lingsuiye via AP)
The stranded hikers had been camping at altitudes above 16,000 feet. Mount Everest, which reaches 29,000 feet and straddles the border between China and Nepal. The Chinese side of Everest is located at the southern edge of Tibet.
Search and rescue efforts were underway across the region as hundreds of hikers were reported trapped due to the extreme weather. (Lingsuiye via AP)
Elsewhere in China, search teams were combing the Qilian Mountains in Qinghai province Tuesday after another deadly storm. One hiker died from hypothermia and altitude sickness and 213 others were evacuated from the rugged region since Sunday.
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Many had entered the remote area after seeing it promoted on social media, according to the official Xinhua News Agency.
In this October 1996 file photo, Mount Everest is seen from the Gokyo Ri peak in Nepal. (AP)
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Search operations, including drones, launched Sunday after hikers reported being trapped in Laohugou, a valley in Menyuan county. The high-altitude search—at more than 13,100 feet—has been hampered by difficult terrain, ongoing snowfall and rapidly changing weather, state media reported.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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An expected sixth vote to reopen the government didn’t come to fruition on Tuesday, but lawmakers face a new wrinkle: the possibility that furloughed employees won’t be paid.
The government shutdown marched into its seventh day with both Senate Republicans and Democrats still at odds on a path forward, and no real clear end in sight. The Senate was expected to vote on the GOP’s plan again, but no agreement could be reached to bring the bill, along with the Democrats’ counter-proposal, to the floor.
Both sides are still entrenched in their positions, too. Senate Democrats want a firm deal on the extension of expiring ObamaCare tax credits to earn their votes to reopen the government, while Senate Republicans have promised that negotiations on the credits can happen once the government is open again.
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President Donald Trump points to a reporter in the Oval Office of the White House, Tuesday, Sept. 30, 2025, in Washington. (Alex Brandon/The Associated Press)
President Donald Trump listens during a news conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the State Dining Room of the White House, Monday, Sept. 29, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Lawmakers failed to hold a sixth vote to reopen the government Tuesday as a new White House memo warned that furloughed workers may not get paid.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has continued to ramp up his messaging that Americans broadly support their push, and blamed House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and House Republicans for not being in session as a major roadblock to progress.
«Hundreds of thousands of federal workers are furloughed and thousands more are working without pay. And meanwhile, House Republicans are getting paid and not working,» Schumer said. «So federal workers working and not getting paid. House Republicans paid and not working. Very bad. Very bad thing for them. Very bad picture for them.»
While lawmakers traded barbs and discussed an off-ramp on Capitol Hill, the latest memo from the White House, first reported by Axios, signaled that up to 750,000 nonessential furloughed federal workers may not be paid.
The memo adds fresh uncertainty for hundreds of thousands of federal employees caught in the political crossfire.
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Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., is holding firm on his and Senate Democrats’ blockade of President Donald Trump’s nominees as Senate Republican march toward a nuclear rules change. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
When asked if it was the White House’s position whether federal workers should be paid back pay, President Donald Trump said, «I would say it depends on who we’re talking about.»
«I can tell you this,» Trump said. «The Democrats have put a lot of people in great risk and jeopardy, but it really depends on who you’re talking about. But for the most part, we’re going to take care of our people. There are some people that really don’t deserve to be taken care of, and we’ll take care of them in a different way.»
Many lawmakers had just learned about the memo as of Tuesday afternoon. It suggested that a 2019 law signed by Trump that guaranteed back pay for furloughed workers in future shutdowns may not have to be followed.
«I just heard that,» Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.V., said. «My phones are lighting up.»
When asked if the memo hurt or helped talks, she said, «It could get more urgent, it also could tick a lot of people off.»
Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., said that the memo was «probably not a good message to send right now to people who are not being paid.»
«I’m not an attorney, but I think it’s bad strategy to even say that sort of stuff,» Tillis said. «We got a lot of hard-working people there on the sidelines now because the Democrats have put them there.»
Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, said that she believed that issue had been settled with the 2019 law, but as a «back up,» Congress could pass a bill that any «obligations that were incurred during the shutdown are authorized to be paid.»
And Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, argued that regardless of the memo, the law said «shall.»
«I left my law degree in the car, but ‘shall’ is relatively straightforward,» he said. «I think it doesn’t matter at all, because we’re fighting for healthcare.»
The latest pressure tactic on Senate Democrats comes after the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) directed in a previous memo that mass firings could be on the horizon beyond the typical furloughs during a shutdown.
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Sen. Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., speaks with reporters near his office on Capitol Hill, Thursday, Sept. 18, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib)
It also comes after OMB Director Russ Vought announced nearly $30 billion in federal funding was set to be withheld from blue cities and states.
Both Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., wanted to see federal workers get paid, but contended that the issue would go away if Schumer and Senate Democrats reopened the government.
«My assumption is that furloughed workers will get back pay,» Thune said. «But that being said, this is very simple. Open up the government and this is a non-issue. We don’t have to have this conversation. Everybody gets paid when the government is open.»
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Meanwhile, the previous tactics did little to nudge Democrats from their position, and so far, have not killed talks between either side.
But Sen. Jean Shaheen, D-N.H., who has been a key communicator for Senate Democrats in bipartisan talks, said that Vought’s actions weren’t helping matters.
«It would be a lot easier to resolve the situation if Russ Vought would stop talking,» Shaheen said.
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