Up First from NPR - Comey Indictment, Hegseth Summons Military Leaders, Impending Shutdown

Episode Date: September 26, 2025

Former FBI Director James Comey is indicted on obstruction and false statement charges after President Trump pressured the Justice Department to pursue a case. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth orders an unprecedented global meeting of top U.S. military commanders, raising questions about what changes are coming. And Democrats accuse the White House of “mafia-style blackmail” as the shutdown fight intensifies over health care funding and the threat of mass federal layoffs. Want more comprehensive analysis of the most important news of the day, plus a little fun? Subscribe to the Up First newsletter.Today’s episode of Up First was edited by Krishnadev Calamur, Andrew Sussman, Kelsey Snell, Mohamad ElBardicy and Alice Woelfle.It was produced by Ziad Buchh, Nia Dumas and Lindsay TottyWe get engineering support from Stacey Abbott. And our technical director is Carleigh Strange.And our Executive Producer is Jay ShaylorLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Former FBI director James Comey says he's not afraid of the Justice Department, which indicted him at the direction of President Trump. I'm innocent. So let's have a trial. How strong is the case against him? I'm he Martinez. That is Steve Inskeep. And this is up first from NPR News. What's the plan for a sudden meeting of hundreds of U.S. military officers? Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth summoned them from around the world to Virginia next week for a closed-door meeting. meeting. Also, Democrats are blasting the White House plan to fire federal workers if a partial government shutdown hits. This is nothing less than mafia-style blackmail, says one lawmaker, but what are Democrats planning to do about it? Stay with us. We've got the news you need

to start your day. This message comes from Rince. Who knows that mastering the perfect House Party table spread takes time. But so does laundry. So rinse takes your laundry and hand delivers it to your door, expertly cleaned. And you can take the time once spent sorting and waiting, folding and queuing to finally pursue your real passion, rolling delicate roses of capacola alongside meandering ribbons of Amon Serrano, transforming a humble plank of weathered barnwood into a show-stopping charcutory spread. Rinse, it's time to be great. The Justice Department obeyed the wishes of President Trump and had a former FBI director indicted.

A prosecutor chosen for the job obtained the indictment from a grand jury in Virginia. It charges James Comey with obstructing justice and making a false statement to Congress. The president changed U.S. attorneys and publicly demanded the prosecution of people he disliked. NPR's Carrie Johnson is covering this story. Carrie, good morning. Good morning. What is the nature of the charges? This is a very bare-bones indictment, not even two full pages long. It seems to relate to testimony Jim Comey gave to the Senate Judiciary Committee in September 2020.

He was talking about the FBI probe of Russian interference in the election and about a media leak. Comey testified he had not authorized a leak from the Bureau, the indictments as he did, and the statute of limitations on these charges was set to run out in a matter of days. So the DOJ was racing against the clock here. Comey responded on Instagram. My heart is broken for the Department of Justice. but I have great confidence in the federal judicial system, and I'm innocent. So let's have a trial.

Well, when he says his heart is broken, I understand it to mean the Justice Department is operating explicitly at the president's direction against his political opponents. What has the president actually been saying? Well, just yesterday afternoon in the Oval Office, President Trump called Comey a bad man and a sick man. And after the indictment, Trump posted, quote, justice in America. And he said, Comey's at the beginning of being held. responsible for his crimes. But this is a very unusual case. Let me share a bit about the timeline. Just last week, the White House forced out a career prosecutor who had been leading the U.S.

Attorney's office in Virginia after that prosecutor raised doubts about the strength of this case against Comey. And the president installed Lindsay Halligan, an insurance lawyer, with no experience as a prosecutor, to lead the whole office. I'm hearing many career prosecutors in Virginia are contemplating quitting over this indictment and how it all went down. Now, I should acknowledge here, Comey enraged a lot of people over the years in both parties. He enraged Republicans over the Russia investigation. But how strong is the actual case against him here? Well, Comey is not only the former FBI director.

He also served as the second in command at the Justice Department under President George W. Bush. He was a line prosecutor in the same office in Virginia that just indicted him. He is a good lawyer. and to make these charges stick, the Justice Department is going to need to prove that Comey knowingly lied about something that was material or important, and that is a high bar. Given all the things President Trump's been saying about Comey, Comey might actually be able to make an argument about vindictive or selective prosecution. And it's also worth noting, this year the DOJ fired Comey's daughter,

Maureen. She'd been a top federal prosecutor in New York. She's now sued over her dismissal, arguing it's because of her father. Well, how does this indictment fit with everything else the president has done at the Justice Department? President Trump has granted clemency to the Capitol rioters. DOJ has fired prosecutors who investigated Trump and other prosecutors who say they simply refuse to lie about things like deportations of migrants, but this Comey case is a major escalation.

This is someone the president has targeted for years. And the feeling among DOJ veterans is, where does this end? Trump's also call for criminal charges against. New York Attorney General Tish James, California, Senator Adam Schiff, both prominent critics. And the president has been vowing to crack down on domestic terror and organized political violence mentioning only yesterday George Soros and his foundation. Senator Mark Warner, Democrat from Virginia says Trump's openly and nakedly trying to weaponize the justice system, and that might make us all less safe.

And Pierce Carey Johnson, thanks for the insights. Really appreciate it. Thank you. It is very rare for the Pentagon to summon its top commanders from around the world into one room. But that's what's happening next week. Defense Secretary Pete Hankseth ordered the gathering in Virginia, but the Pentagon is not saying why or what he plans to announce. NPR Pentagon correspondent Tom Bowman is covering this, of course. Tom, good morning. Hey, Steve. How much do you know?

Well, again, not too much. We're talking hundreds of generals and admirals who will meet on Tuesday at Marine Base Quantico. just outside Washington. The Washington Post was the first report on this meeting. In a statement, Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said, quote, the Secretary of War will be addressing his senior military leaders early next week. And he was using the term Secretary of War, which both President Trump and Defense Secretary Haguezeth prefer instead of Defense Secretary. Have you heard of a meeting like this ever in your decades covering the Pentagon? No, absolutely not. This is on this scale, never. At times, you know, they'll bring in combatant commanders, those who oversee military operations around the world,

bring them to the Pentagon for annual meetings, but this is far different in the numbers. Now, Secretary Heggseth has talked about reducing the number of admirals and generals, who stand at more than 800, reducing that number by 20%. And he talked about that during his confirmation hearing and also put out a video statement back in May, once again, referring to this. Let's listen. We're back with more DOD reforms. This one is general and flag officer reductions. That's the official title.

My title is less generals, more GIs. It's a historic one, and it's in keeping with President Trump's commitment to achieving peace through strength. We're going to shift resources from bloated headquarters elements to our warfighters. So again, see, that could be the reason for this meaning. Again, we just don't know for sure. And I guess as you try to figure out what's going on, covering this as a citizen for your fellow citizens,

have to deal with a new Pentagon media policy. What is it? Well, it says reporters must pledge not to report on classified or even unclassified material until something is released by the Pentagon. And if you don't agree to this, you'll lose your press pass. And you can't report from the Pentagon, but get this. Also, you'll be barred from any U.S. military base around the world. Well, as you know, Steve, our job is not to be stenographers. The Pentagon has public affairs people and service members who write news stories. What we do is find out what's going on behind the scenes. What are the policies? Are they working? What weapons are you buying? And are you wasting money involved in illegal activity? Our job is to be watchdogs for government. Yeah, not in a formal

position except that you're a citizen. So you're supposed to act as a citizen and find out what's going on. How do those rules affect reporting? Well, there was a time you could roam around the Pentagon, maybe run into admirals or generals and get a better sense of what's going on. I remember after Baghdad fell during the Iraq war, Defense Secretary Don Rumsfeld talked about this success in a briefing. I was walking down the hall right after that and ran into this army officer I know. And I said, hey, good news, right? He said, no, Tom, this is not a success. Saddam Hussein supporters are hitting our supply lines. We have to send troops back to protect them because we never sent enough troops in. That was the decision by Rumsfeld. That was an important

development. Now, Steve, I'm not allowed to walk down that hallway. The kind of information the government no longer wants us to know. Tom, thanks so much. You're welcome. NPR's Tom Bowman. We are four days away from a government shutdown. And a memo from the White House promises to punish federal workers if that happens. The Trump administration is threatening large-scale layoffs if Democrats don't provide the necessary votes to avoid a shutdown. We don't know. exactly which jobs would be targeted or how many federal workers could lose their jobs,

but the deadline to come up with a solution is fast approaching. And NPR congressional correspondent Barbara Sprunt will be covering whatever happens. Barbara, good morning. Hey, good morning, Steve. Okay, so this is kind of a departure from the normal shutdown scenario where the government says we're going to increase the pain. What prompted this? Well, there's a line in the memo that I think is telling here, essentially saying we're hopeful that Democrats in Congress don't trigger a shutdown.

and then this won't be necessary. So I think this is partly aimed at making any funding lapse as difficult as possible for Democrats. Normally in a shutdown, you know, agencies furlough federal workers temporarily until a deal is brokered and a stopgap funding bill is passed. This is next level. It's instructing agencies to look for workers to fire permanently

people whose work is not consistent with the president's priorities. How are Democrats responding? Well, they view it as an intimidation tactic to get them to accept the continuing. resolution that House Republicans passed that would fund the government through November 21st. I spoke with Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen, a Democrat, about this yesterday. Here's what he had to say. This is nothing less than mafia-style blackmail. Essentially, the president is threatening

to fire dedicated federal employees who have nothing to do with the ongoing political and policy dispute. Meanwhile, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer says that if these firings do go forward, he suspects they'll eventually be overturned in court. Although we've learned when the president fires someone, even if a court finds illegality, it's difficult to reverse the firing. So we'll see. Is anybody talking about getting a deal out of this? Well, top congressional Democrats were supposed to meet with President Trump yesterday at the White House, but the president canceled that meeting saying it would be pointless to meet because Democrats, in his view, are making unreasonable demands. Which are what? Well, Democrats want to roll back some Medicaid changes that were

part of the big tax and spending bill that the president signed earlier this summer, and they want to extend tax credits from the Affordable Care Act that are set to expire at the end of the year. House Democratic leader, Hakeem Jeffries, has said a verbal agreement that comes in any sort of negotiation isn't enough. Democrats want to address these issues in written legislation. Here he is yesterday. We're able to sit down anytime, any place with anyone. Not hard to find. I'm here in the Capitol, willing to go to the White House at any time. in order to have that conversation. But you know, Steve, yes, this is about the shutdown.

It's a very real possibility, and it would have very real consequences for people who rely on certain services and workers who might find themselves without a job permanently. But this is also about an ongoing conflict between the White House and Democrats in Congress who feel the administration has continued to overreach in its authority and diminish the legislative branch's power of the purse.

So, yes, this memo is unprecedented, but it also very much followed, as the administration's philosophy that we've seen play out again and again this year. Well, Barbara, I hope you're ready for a busy few days here. Looking forward to it. Thanks, Steve. NPR congressional correspondent Barbara Sprunt. And that's at first for this Friday, September 26th. I'm Steve Inskeep.

Enemy Martinez, this Sunday on a burst, the Trump administration has moved fast to make major changes to U.S. policy. But what's been the impact on Americans ranging from the manufacturing town of Tupelo Mississippi? Mr. Trump is a businessman and he knows how to make deals and his track record has shown it. To the farm fields of the Midwest. Things are changing hour by hour. How do you operate a business that way? The Sunday story from Up First takes a road across America to hear how people are faring as a country sets a new course. Listen to the Sunday story right here in the Upburst podcast. Wow, I want to listen to that. Today's Up First was edited by Krishnaev Kalimer, Andrew

Sussman, Kelsey Snell, Mohammed al-Bard Disi, and Alice Wolfley. It was produced by Ziyadh-Buch, Neo-Demoss, and Lindsay Tottie. We get engineering support from the eternally supportive Stacey Abbott and our technical director is the very direct, Carly Strange. Our executive producer is Jay Shaler. Join us again. Want to hear this podcast without sponsor breaks? Amazon Prime members can listen to UpFirst sponsor-free through Amazon music. Or you can also support NPR's vital journalism and get Upfirstplus at plus.npr.org. That's plus.npr.org.