Today in one sentence: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered hundreds of U.S. generals and admirals to assemble at Quantico for an in-person meeting without giving a reason; the FBI said the Dallas ICE shooter planned to “maximize lethality against ICE personnel” and cause “real terror”; the Justice Department indicted former FBI Director James Comey on charges of making a false statement and obstruction; every living former chair of the Federal Reserve urged the Supreme Court to block Trump from firing Fed governor Lisa Cook; the Justice Department sued California, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania for refusing to turn over full statewide voter registration rolls; Trump signed an executive order declaring a proposed TikTok deal compliant with U.S. national security requirements; Trump personally called Rupert Murdoch from Air Force One to try to kill a Wall Street Journal story about a 2003 Jeffrey Epstein birthday book, insisting a letter with his name “didn’t exist”; and the Trump administration ordered agencies to plan permanent layoffs if the government shuts down Oct. 1.

1/ Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered hundreds of U.S. generals and admirals to assemble at Quantico for an in-person meeting without giving a reason. The Pentagon only said Hegseth “will be addressing his senior military leaders early next week.” Military officials said pulling so many top officers into one place, including commanders from conflict zones overseas, was highly unusual and created security risks, with one calling it “not how this is done.” Trump, meanwhile, asked, “Why is that such a big deal?” with Vance claiming the meeting is “not particularly unusual.” Hegseth has already ordered a 20% cut in four-star officers and at least a 10% cut across all senior ranks. He’s also fired the chairman of the Joint Chiefs, the Navy’s top admiral, the Coast Guard commandant, the Air Force’s vice chief, and the head of the Defense Intelligence Agency, mostly without explanation. (Washington Post / New York Times / Associated Press / Bloomberg / ABC News / CNN / Axios)

2/ The FBI said the Dallas ICE shooter planned to “maximize lethality against ICE personnel” and cause “real terror,” according to notes recovered at his home. Acting U.S. attorney Nancy Larson said his writings called ICE employees “people showing up to collect a dirty paycheck” and included the line, “Yes, it was just me.” FBI Director Kash Patel confirmed bullets marked “ANTI-ICE” were found along with searches for ICE agent tracking apps, ballistics, and the “Charlie Kirk Shot Video.” Even though investigators haven’t linked the shooter to any political group, Trump nevertheless blamed “radical left Democrats” for the shooting, saying “Bad things happen when they play these games” and warning that “the right is a lot tougher than the left.” (USA Today / Axios / ABC News / NBC News / CNN / Wall Street Journal / Washington Post / NPR)

3/ The Justice Department indicted former FBI Director James Comey on charges of making a false statement and obstruction. While career prosecutors in Virginia had warned they couldn’t establish probable cause, the indictment went forward days after Trump demanded Attorney General Pam Bondi act against Comey and his other perceived opponents, saying they were “all guilty as hell.” Trump had just ousted acting U.S. attorney Erik Siebert for resisting charges and installed Lindsey Halligan, a White House aide and his former defense attorney with no prosecutorial experience, who then pushed the case forward and secured an indictment. [Editor’s note: This is breaking news. I will update the blog with more details when confirmed.] (Associated Press / Axios / ABC News / CNBC / NBC News / CNN)

4/ Every living former chair of the Federal Reserve urged the Supreme Court to block Trump from firing Fed governor Lisa Cook, warning the move would “jeopardize the credibility and efficacy of U.S. monetary policy.” No president has ever fired a Fed governor in the institution’s 111-year history. Trump asked the court to end a lower court order protecting Cook, citing unproven mortgage fraud claims from before she joined the Fed. Her lawyers called the allegations “manufactured” and “flimsy,” saying they followed Trump’s attacks on Fed policy. “There must be some meaningful check on the president’s ability to remove Governor Cook,” they told the justices. (New York Times / Wall Street Journal / CNN / CNBC)

5/ The Justice Department sued California, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania for refusing to turn over full statewide voter registration rolls. The lawsuits sought names, birth dates, addresses, driver’s license numbers and partial Social Security numbers, a demand that states said violates protected private information. “Clean voter rolls are the foundation of free and fair elections,” Attorney General Pamela Bondi said, warning that states that don’t comply “will see this Department of Justice in court.” (CBS News / New York Times / Politico / Associated Press)

6/ Trump signed an executive order declaring a proposed TikTok deal compliant with U.S. national security requirements. The order delays enforcement of a 2024 law that required ByteDance to sell TikTok’s U.S. operations or face a nationwide ban. It was the fifth time Trump extended the deadline. The plan would give U.S. investors about 80% control of the app and place Oracle in charge of security and the algorithm. China hasn’t confirmed approval of the deal and lawmakers said they would review the final terms. (Associated Press / ABC News / Washington Post / NBC News / Bloomberg / CNBC)

7/ Trump personally called Rupert Murdoch from Air Force One to try to kill a Wall Street Journal story about a 2003 Jeffrey Epstein birthday book, insisting a letter with his name “didn’t exist.” The Journal published it anyway, and Trump sued Murdoch and News Corp for defamation. At the same time, Trump snapped at reporters, “Are you still talking about Jeffrey Epstein? This guy’s been talked about for years,” denied that Attorney General Pam Bondi told him his name was in the files, and watched aides scramble through Situation Room meetings and send the Justice Department to interview Ghislaine Maxwell, before finally brushing it off in September: “Really, I think it’s enough.” (Wall Street Journal)

8/ The Trump administration ordered agencies to plan permanent layoffs if the government shuts down Oct. 1. The Office of Management and Budget told agencies to draft reduction-in-force plans for workers in programs without other funding or “not consistent with the President’s priorities.” Trump canceled a meeting with Democratic leaders yesterday and called them “unserious and ridiculous.” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, meanwhile, called the plan “an attempt at intimidation,” and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said, “We will not be intimidated by your threat to engage in mass firings. Get lost.” (Politico / Washington Post / New York Times / Associated Press / CBS News / NBC News / CNBC / Bloomberg / Wall Street Journal)

⏭️ Notably Next: Congress has 5 days to pass a funding measure to prevent a government shutdown; and the 2026 midterms are in 404 days.

Two years ago today: Day 979: "Safer than ever."
Five years ago today: Day 1345: "Train wreck."
Six years ago today: Day 979: "Do us a favor."
Seven years ago today: Day 614: But that's okay.
Eight years ago today: Day 249: But her emails.