Shutdown forces airports into unprecedented flight reductions

Summary

Apple News Today

Episode: Shutdown forces airports into unprecedented flight reductions
Date: November 6, 2025
Host: Shumita Basu

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Overview

This episode covers the deepening impact of the U.S. government shutdown, particularly on aviation, with a historic order to cut flights at major airports. The episode also delves into the latest on the civil war in Sudan, the transformation of American dining by delivery apps, and quick hits on Supreme Court skepticism over tariffs, the James Comey court case, and the country’s “penny pinch.” The tone is calm, informative, and empathetic, with clear attributions and guest insights throughout.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Historic Flight Reductions Amid Shutdown

• Background: The Trump administration ordered a 10% reduction in flights at 40 major U.S. airports, citing staff shortages caused by the prolonged government shutdown—the longest in history (00:51).
• Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warns of increased delays and cancellations but emphasizes safety is the top priority:

  “We do not want to see disruptions at the FAA or here at DOT... But our number one priority is to make sure when you travel, you travel safely.”
  — Sean Duffy [01:08]

• FAA Administrator Brian Bedford highlights the unprecedented nature of the crisis for U.S. aviation:

  “I'm not aware in my 35 year history... where we've had a situation where we're taking these kind of measures... These are unusual times and we look forward to a time when we can get back to business as usual.”
  — Brian Bedford [01:55]

• Current State: U.S. is short 2,000 air traffic controllers, putting enormous strain on airports and travelers (01:42).
• Political Fallout: Trump reportedly showed frustration after GOP’s election defeats, pressuring lawmakers to act and suggesting elimination of the Senate filibuster to end the shutdown, which GOP leaders reject (02:22–03:27).
  • House Speaker Mike Johnson downplays the effect of elections, attributing them mainly to typical blue state turnout:

    “Off year elections are not indicative of what’s to come. That’s what history teaches us.”
    — Mike Johnson [03:37]

  • Senator Bernie Sanders outlines needed commitments to restore ACA health care subsidies before supporting a deal to end the shutdown:

    “If you simply had a nebulous vote that wasn’t going to go anyplace, I think we got to continue to fight.”
    — Bernie Sanders [04:12]

• Negotiations: Lawmakers are considering a short-term continuing resolution and possible health care provisions as the basis for a reopening deal (03:53–04:38).

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2. Escalation in Sudan’s Civil War

• Overview: The crisis in Sudan is called the “worst humanitarian crisis on earth” with famine formally declared and mass atrocities occurring (05:00–05:09).
• Expert Insight: Dr. Alex Duvall (World Peace Foundation) explains the conflict is a brutal struggle between two military factions:

  “This is a war between two generals who are really fighting over who gets to be the ruler of Sudan.”
  — Alex Duvall [05:30]

• Recent Events: The militia Rapid Support Forces (RSF) overran Al Fasha, causing massive civilian casualties and displacement (06:05).
  • Satellite images and on-the-ground reports confirm large-scale killings and that “hunger is being used as a weapon in this war as well as massacre.”
    — Alex Duvall [06:37]
• Personal Testimony: Ikrem Abdel Ahmed tells of fleeing violence and witnessing executions:

  “They took the men out and lined them up and they shot them in front of us.”
  — Ikrem Abdel Ahmed [07:29]

• Global Response: Comparisons are made to the Darfur genocide 20 years before, with renewed calls for humanitarian intervention (07:41–08:12).
• Diplomacy: Sudan’s armed forces reject a new U.S. ceasefire proposal but U.S. officials say diplomatic efforts will continue (08:12).

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3. The Transformation of American Dining

• Trend: Delivery apps have fundamentally changed the restaurant industry, with nearly 75% of U.S. restaurant orders now eaten off-premises (08:50–09:04).
• Expert Commentary: Atlantic staff writer Ellen Cushing describes how delivery is displacing traditional sit-down dining:

  “Full service restaurants that previously used to be full of people... those are the restaurants that are now being really taken over by deliveries.”
  — Ellen Cushing [09:22]

• Rise of 'Dinner Factories': Many new restaurants are now designed almost exclusively for delivery rather than in-person dining (09:40).
• Tech Disruption: Early delivery apps subsidized the cost to attract users; restaurants and customers initially benefited, but soon the costs shifted back onto both as tech companies consolidated (10:06–11:37).

  “Delivery is kind of eating the American restaurant.”
  — Ellen Cushing [10:21]

• Labor Impact: Delivery work is dangerous, incentivizing speed and risk (11:04), with drivers paid per delivery.

  “Delivery unleashed hundreds of thousands of vehicles... and then gave the people driving them... a huge incentive to move really fast.”
  — Ellen Cushing [11:14]

• Financial Strain: With DoorDash and Uber now controlling about 90% of the market, delivery fees have increased, drivers earn less, and restaurants are struggling:

  “Customers are getting charged more, drivers are making less, and restaurants are mostly losing out.”
  — Ellen Cushing [11:42]

  • Notable quote from a restaurant owner:

    “Delivery saved us during the pandemic. Now they are killing us.”
    — Restaurant group owner (quoted by Ellen Cushing) [12:02]

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4. Quick News Roundup

• Supreme Court Skeptical Over Trump Tariffs
  The Court questions the president’s unilateral authority to impose wide-reaching tariffs; decision may have major economic implications (12:17–12:55).

  Justice Neil Gorsuch: “Congress has the power to levy taxes and regulate foreign commerce...” [12:35]

• Comey Case Controversy
  A judge presses DOJ prosecutors on the “indict now, investigate second” handling of Comey’s case; critics call it politically motivated (13:03–13:34).

• ‘Penny Pinch’: Shortage of U.S. Pennies
  Production of the penny was halted for cost-cutting reasons (it costs 3.7 cents to make a cent), prompting retailers to stockpile and offer penny exchange deals (13:34–14:07).

  • Burger King operators and supermarket chains adjust to the shortage, described as “an inverse gold rush.”

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Memorable Quotes & Moments

• Sean Duffy on Flight Reductions:
  “We have seen staffing pressures throughout our airspace... Our number one priority is making sure you travel safely.” [01:08]

• Brian Bedford on Crisis Uniqueness:
  “These are unusual times and we look forward to a time when we can get back to business as usual.” [01:55]

• Alex Duvall on Darfur:
  “Autumn leaves strewn across the streets and squares and fields of Al Fasha...” [06:37]

• Ikrem Abdel Ahmed’s Testimony:
  “They lined them up and shot them in the street and left them.” [07:29]

• Ellen Cushing on Industry Shift:
  “Delivery is kind of eating the American restaurant.” [10:21]

• Restaurant Owner on Delivery Apps:
  “Delivery saved us during the pandemic. Now they are killing us.” [12:02]

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Notable Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:51 – Start of shutdown/flight reduction coverage
• 01:08 – Sean Duffy on safety priorities
• 01:55 – Brian Bedford, FAA Administrator, on the aviation system
• 04:12 – Bernie Sanders outlines conditions to end shutdown
• 05:00 – Sudan crisis introduction
• 06:37 – Duvall details atrocities in Al Fasha
• 07:29 – Ikrem Abdel Ahmed’s story
• 08:40 – Delivery app restaurant segment begins
• 09:22 – Ellen Cushing on restaurant transformation
• 10:21 – Cushing on delivery’s negative impact
• 11:42 – Costs and consequences for industry stakeholders
• 12:17 – Supreme Court/trade news
• 13:34 – Penny shortage news

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Episode Flow & Tone

The episode achieves a crisp, informative pace, moving from hard news to analysis, personal stories, and expert perspectives. Quotes are woven in for emotional resonance and authority, maintaining the podcast’s measured, thoughtful delivery.

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For full articles and further reading, all referenced stories are available via the Apple News app.

Transcript

[Shemitah Basu]

Hey there, it's Shemitha. I've got a quick request for you. If Apple News Today is an essential part of your morning routine, follow the show in Apple Podcasts. And if you have another 30 seconds.

[Co-host]

Leave us a rating and a review, too.

[Shemitah Basu]

It helps other people find our show and it helps us know what you like about it.

[Co-host]

Thanks.

[Shemitah Basu]

Good morning. It's Thursday, November 6th. I'm Shemitah Basu.

[Co-host]

This is Apple News Today.

[Shemitah Basu]

On today's show, the latest escalation in Sudan civil war, how delivery apps transformed.

[Co-host]

American dining, and the scramble to secure the country's last pennies.

[Shemitah Basu]

But first, to the shutdown, officially the longest ever. Yesterday we had another unprecedented announcement. The Trump administration has ordered a 10% flight reduction in 40 of the country's major airport, which Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy.

[Co-host]

Said would bring additional disruptions.

[Sean Duffy]

We have seen staffing pressures throughout our airspace. Those who travel will see that we've had more delays, we've had more cancellations. We do not want to see disruptions at the FAA or here at dot. We don't want that. But our number one priority is to make sure when you travel, you travel safely.

[Shemitah Basu]

Duffy said high volume pressure points would.

[Co-host]

Be targeted and the locations would be announced today, with reductions starting Friday. He's previously warned of mass chaos for travelers if the shutdown continued.

[Shemitah Basu]

Remember, the country is already 2,000 people.

[Co-host]

Short of the air traffic controllers it needs.

[Shemitah Basu]

FAA Administrator Brian Bedford suggested that the.

[Co-host]

Issues, if left unchecked, would prevent him from being able to declare the US Airline system the safest in the world.

[Brian Bedford]

I'm not aware in my 35 year history in the aviation market where we've had a situation where we're taking these kind of measures. I think it is unusual, just as the shutdown is unusual. Just on the fact that our controllers haven't been paid for a month is unusual. These are unusual times and we look forward to a time when we can get back to business as usual.

[Shemitah Basu]

Until then, the shutdown is continuing to.

[Co-host]

Put pressure on people's lives in big and small ways. And Trump has begun to show his.

[Shemitah Basu]

Frustration to lawmakers, particularly after the GOP.

[Co-host]

Election defeats on Tuesday.

[Shemitah Basu]

Yesterday, he gathered a group of Republican.

[Co-host]

Senators in Miami for a breakfast.

[Shemitah Basu]

There he delivered his own verdict on.

[Co-host]

What went wrong for the party.

[Political Analyst]

I think if you read the pollsters, the shutdown was a big factor, negative for the Republicans, and that was a big factor. And they say that I wasn't on the ballot was the biggest factor. But I don't know about that. But I was honored that they said.

[Shemitah Basu]

That after the cameras left. Axios reports that it became an uncomfortable meeting as Trump warned lawmakers they would.

[Co-host]

Be seen as do nothing Republicans if the shutdown continued.

[Shemitah Basu]

And he again called for Republicans to.

[Co-host]

Pursue what's long been seen as a radical option, eliminate the filibuster that is changing the Senate rules requiring 60 votes for most legislation. But this call has inspired rare dissent from GOP leadership.

[Shemitah Basu]

Both Senate Majority Leader John Thune and.

[Co-host]

House Speaker Mike Johnson have dismissed the idea, either because the votes aren't there.

[Shemitah Basu]

Or because they fear what it would.

[Co-host]

Mean if Democrats won majorities. In his assessment of this week's election results, Johnson avoided joining Trump in pinning the blame on the congressional standoff.

[Mike Johnson]

What happened last night was blue states and blue cities voted blue. We all saw that coming. And no one should read too much into last night's election results. Off year elections are not indicative of what's to come. That's what history teaches us.

[Shemitah Basu]

Meanwhile, talks on how to get the.

[Co-host]

Government moving again are stepping up. According to Politico.

[Shemitah Basu]

They're centered on whether to at least.

[Co-host]

Agree on a short term measure called a continuing resolution and for how long.

[Shemitah Basu]

Long. And whether Democrats could agree to a.

[Co-host]

Guaranteed vote on expanding health care subsidies.

[Shemitah Basu]

Senator Bernie Sanders outlined the steps he.

[Co-host]

Would need to see if we had.

[Bernie Sanders]

A commitment from the speaker of the House that he was prepared to support a strong extension of ACA credits and if the President of the United States and I don't trust them. So you're going to have to figure out how he structured this, was saying that he was prepared to sign it. I think we should end the shutdown tomorrow. If you had that commitment. But if you simply had a nebulous vote that wasn't going to go anyplace, I think we got to continue to fight.

[Co-host]

Axios reports that for some Democrats, that positioning has only strengthened following the election.

[Shemitah Basu]

Let's turn to an underreported part of the world.

[Co-host]

The ongoing civil war in Sudan has.

[Shemitah Basu]

Been escalating in recent weeks, and it's.

[Co-host]

Now being called the worst humanitarian crisis on earth and a warning. This story has some graphic descriptions of war and violence.

[Shemitah Basu]

Mass executions and sexual violence have been.

[Co-host]

Reported, and this week a famine was formally declared.

[Shemitah Basu]

The world has condemned the killings, but.

[Co-host]

This is a complicated conflict with no clear route to peace.

[Shemitah Basu]

We spoke to Alex Duvall, the executive.

[Co-host]

Director of the World Peace foundation at the Fletcher School at Tufts University and an Africa analyst for the BBC.

[Alex Duvall]

So this is a war between two generals who are really fighting over who gets to be the ruler of Sudan.

[Shemitah Basu]

Duvall told us. At its core, this conflict centers on.

[Co-host]

Two factions who ruled the country together after ousting the president back in 2019.

[Shemitah Basu]

But that alliance soon broke down and descended into a power struggle between the.

[Co-host]

Sudanese armed forces and a militia group called the Rapid Support Forces, or RSF.

[Shemitah Basu]

Since 2023, over 150,000 people are thought.

[Co-host]

To have been killed and millions displaced.

[Shemitah Basu]

And now the war appears to be.

[Co-host]

Heading for a violent turning point. Last week, the militias seized Al Fasha, the Sudanese armed forces last stronghold in Darfur.

[Alex Duvall]

The people of El Fascia feared that they would be literally put to the sword, shot to death if El Fasha were overrun. And that is what we are seeing happening today.

[Shemitah Basu]

The United nations believes that 200,000 civilians.

[Co-host]

Were stuck in El Fasha at the time it was overrun by the rsf. And shocking reports note that the devastation can quite literally be seen from space.

[Alex Duvall]

We also have satellites that can actually track the numbers of bodies. You see them from satellite photographs. Autumn leaves strewn across the streets and squares and fields of Al Fasha. And we have the reports of local humanitarian workers who tell us the stories of the survivors of these massacres and whose children come in, every single one of them malnourished and starving because hunger is being used as a weapon in this war as well as massacre.

[Shemitah Basu]

Thousands of people have tried to flee.

[Co-host]

Al Fasha, including Ikrem Abdel Ahmed, who.

[Shemitah Basu]

Shared her story with a local journalist.

[Co-host]

Via an Interpreter on PBS NewsHour.

[Shemitah Basu]

Her daughter and son in law were.

[Co-host]

Killed and she's now raising her infant grandson with little to no food.

[Ikrem Abdel Ahmed]

We came running, they were chasing us, firing rockets over our heads. They took the men out and lined them up and they shot them in front of us. They lined them up and shot them in the street and left them.

[Shemitah Basu]

This is not the first time Darfur.

[Co-host]

Has witnessed large scale suffering. Twenty years ago, massacres in the Darfur region provoked international horror and captured the.

[Shemitah Basu]

Attention of Western leaders. At the time, President Bush became the.

[Co-host]

First UN Security Council member to declare.

[Shemitah Basu]

It a genocide and gave billions of.

[Co-host]

Dollars in humanitarian aid.

[Shemitah Basu]

While a list celebrities like George Clooney.

[Co-host]

Took on UN roles to raise awareness, the capture of Al Fasha and the.

[Shemitah Basu]

Possibility of the RSF controlling an entire.

[Co-host]

Vast region of Sudan has added urgency to conversations about an end to the atrocities. In recent days, the Sudanese armed forces rejected a US proposal for a ceasefire and vowed to fight on against the rsf. But the Trump administration said yesterday they would continue their efforts with the region's stakeholders.

[Shemitah Basu]

Is ordering in eating away at the traditional idea of the restaurant? That's the question asked in a recent.

[Co-host]

Piece in the Atlantic.

[Shemitah Basu]

It wasn't so long ago that there.

[Co-host]

Was a clear culinary divide between what's traditionally considered takeout food like pizza and everything else.

[Shemitah Basu]

But last year, nearly three out of.

[Co-host]

Every four restaurant orders in the US Weren't eaten in a restaurant.

[Shemitah Basu]

The food delivery industry that didn't really.

[Co-host]

Exist 15 years ago brings in tens of billions of dollars each year.

[Shemitah Basu]

And as the US has transformed into a nation of order, inners restaurants are struggling to keep up. Atlantic staff writer Ellen Cushing told us.

[Co-host]

What this has meant for establishments.

[Ellen Cushing]

The change that is happening right now is that these full service restaurants that previously used to be full of people on a Friday night celebrating a birthday or a graduation or something, those are the restaurants that are now being really taken over by deliveries.

[Shemitah Basu]

In other words, as Cushing puts it.

[Co-host]

In her piece, more and more new restaurants opening in big cities aren't geared toward in person dining at all, but are basically dinner factories built for deliveries.

[Shemitah Basu]

The shift in restaurants operating more like.

[Co-host]

Pickup counters was supercharged by tech companies like DoorDash and Postmates. In the early 2010s, apps like GrubHub and Seamless stepped in to be the intermediary between customers and restaurants who weren't.

[Shemitah Basu]

Really sure how to build their own.

[Co-host]

Websites and payment portals. These companies subsidized the cost of delivery.

[Shemitah Basu]

To attract new customers and get them hooked on takeout. Customers got cheap delivery restaurants made money, and Silicon Valley covered the difference.

[Ellen Cushing]

That was a huge, huge change. And that kicked off an era where individual restaurants are no longer in charge of delivery. They're handing over a major part of their operation to other companies. And that kicked off the era that we are in now where delivery is kind of eating the American American restaurant.

[Co-host]

The COVID pandemic entrenched the idea that restaurant food at home was no longer just an occasional indulgence for those who could afford it.

[Shemitah Basu]

Restaurants who hadn't started offering delivery yet.

[Co-host]

Began to in order to survive. And because the people making these deliveries.

[Shemitah Basu]

Are generally paid by the delivery and not by the hour, Cushing points out that delivery workers now have one of.

[Co-host]

The most dangerous jobs in the country.

[Shemitah Basu]

Often feeling pressure to make as many deliveries as possible, even in periods of.

[Co-host]

Heavy traffic or hazardous weather conditions.

[Ellen Cushing]

Delivery unleashed hundreds of thousands of vehicles onto American streets and then gave the people driving them or riding them in the case of e bikes, like a huge incentive to move really fast.

[Shemitah Basu]

Eventually, delivery companies consolidated with DoorDash and Uber, which together now control about 90%.

[Co-host]

Of the US market for delivery.

[Shemitah Basu]

The subsidies went away and those costs.

[Co-host]

Were passed on to consumers and restaurants.

[Shemitah Basu]

We've reached a point where, as Cushing.

[Co-host]

Points out, customers are getting charged more, drivers are making less, and restaurants are mostly losing out.

[Shemitah Basu]

One restaurant group owner told Cushing last.

[Co-host]

Year her restaurants made half their sales on delivery.

[Shemitah Basu]

Of that, 23% went to delivery companies. She said, quote, delivery saved us during the pandemic.

[Co-host]

Now they are killing us.

[Shemitah Basu]

Before we let you go, a few.

[Co-host]

Other stories we're following.

[Shemitah Basu]

The Supreme Court expressed skepticism over the.

[Co-host]

Legality of President Trump's tariffs.

[Shemitah Basu]

During oral arguments Wednesday, several of the court's conservative members, along with the liberal wing, appeared doubtful the president had the.

[Co-host]

Authority to impose wide ranging tariffs on goods from nearly every country the US does business with.

[Shemitah Basu]

Justice Neil Gorsuch noted that Congress has.

[Co-host]

The power to levy taxes and regulate.

[Shemitah Basu]

Foreign commerce and and he seemed wary of expanding the president's power, asking what would prevent lawmakers from simply handing other.

[Co-host]

Powers, like declaring war to the president. The court's decision could have major implications on global trade and the economy.

[Shemitah Basu]

It's also the first big test as.

[Co-host]

To whether the court will expand or limit Trump's assertion of power in his second term.

[Shemitah Basu]

A judge criticized Justice Department prosecutors for.

[Co-host]

Their highly unusual handling of James Comey's case, which a judge said had a feeling of indict now investigate.

[Shemitah Basu]

Second, at a hearing yesterday, a judge.

[Co-host]

Pressed for direct answers on what evidence the prosecutors had and ordered them to present their materials. Comey is charged with lying to Congress in a case President Trump urged the DOJ to pursue. He's pleaded not guilty and says it's a vindictive prosecution.

[Shemitah Basu]

And finally, to what's being called the penny pinch. Earlier this year, the Trump administration halted.

[Co-host]

Production of the penny as a cost cutting measure. Each penny costs 3.7 cents to make.

[Shemitah Basu]

Left some retailers caught off guard and scrambling to shore up the remaining $0.01 coins. Kind of like an inverse gold rush. The Wall Street Journal cites a Burger.

[Co-host]

King operator who has told staff to stockpile them so they can continue giving customers paying with cash the change that they're owed.

[Shemitah Basu]

And Axios mentions a supermarket chain, Giant Eagle, that held a penny exchange day.

[Co-host]

Offering customers double value gift cards for whatever they brought in in pennies.

[Shemitah Basu]

You can find all these stories and.

[Co-host]

More in the Apple news app.

[Shemitah Basu]

And if you're already listening in the.

[Co-host]

News app right now, we've got a narrated article coming up next.

[Shemitah Basu]

The New Yorker reports on the condition.

[Co-host]

Known as aphantasia, which is the inability to see images in your mind and how research shows the wide array of connections it has to things like trauma, emotional awareness and making art.

[Shemitah Basu]

If you're listening in the podcast app.

[Co-host]

Follow Apple News plus Narrated to find that story and I'll be back with the news tomorrow.