Overview of U.S. Government Reopens, But Slowly (WSJ — What's News, AM edition)
This episode (Nov. 13) of The Wall Street Journal's What's News (host Caitlin McCabe) covers the end of a record 43-day federal government shutdown and the uneven restart that follows; newly released Jeffrey Epstein emails and related House maneuvering; how Chinese companies are finding legal workarounds to access U.S. NVIDIA AI chips via third countries; and a major South Korea project to build a data center designed and run by AI.
Government reopening — main facts and near-term impacts
- Shutdown ended after 43 days when the Republican-led House passed, and President Trump signed, a spending package extending government funding through January.
- The package includes: full-year funding for USDA, Military Construction, and Legislative Branch; pay for federal employees; language reversing some Trump-initiated federal layoffs and a moratorium on future cuts.
- Return-to-work will be uneven: agencies are reopening at different speeds and many employees were told to be prepared to return immediately, but:
- Backlogs will take time to clear.
- Aviation safety/recovery could take days or longer.
- SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) funding distribution to states is uncertain — more than 40 million Americans receive benefits.
- National parks should resume fuller services but staffing was limited during the shutdown.
- Key economic data releases may be disrupted: White House Press Secretary Karoline (Caroline) Leavitt said two major October reports (inflation and labor market) “are likely never to be released,” blamed on the shutdown. The Bureau of Labor Statistics has not yet provided a timeline for catching up.
Epstein files and political fallout
- Democrats released a set of Jeffrey Epstein emails that mentioned Donald Trump; Republicans’ House Oversight Committee responded by releasing ~20,000 pages of Epstein documents.
- Rep. Adelita Grijalva (D-AZ) became the 218th signer on a bipartisan discharge petition to force a House vote to compel Justice Department release of additional Epstein files; Speaker Johnson said he expected to bring the matter to the floor next week.
- The legislation is unlikely to become law (faces Senate and possible presidential veto) but forces lawmakers on record.
- Political messaging: Republicans, including President Trump and Press Secretary Leavitt, called the releases a distraction tied to the government reopening.
China, NVIDIA chips, and export-control workarounds
- U.S. export rules have for years barred direct sales of NVIDIA’s most advanced AI chips to China (national-security concerns).
- Journal reporting traced a chain in which thousands of NVIDIA chips were sold through intermediaries to an Indonesian data center that then provided services to a Chinese AI company — a legal gray area in many cases.
- Typical chain: NVIDIA → server-maker/integrator → third-country data center (e.g., Indonesia) → Chinese end user.
- Experts who helped design export controls said if all parties followed applicable rules, these transactions may not violate law, though they can violate the “spirit” of restrictions.
- Regulatory context: A late-Biden rule would have required permission for reexports of advanced U.S. chips via third countries; the Trump administration chose not to enforce that rule immediately. Officials may clarify or tighten controls in coming weeks/months.
AI-designed data center in South Korea
- A $35 billion facility under development in South Korea aims to be largely designed, built, and run by AI.
- Early-stage AI tasks: optimize floor/ceiling layout, energy usage, cooling systems (minimizing water use), and adapt operations to different AI workloads.
- Humans will remain in supervisory roles.
- If completed by 2028, the center could reach up to ~3 gigawatts of power — far above the typical ~1 GW cap and nearly three times the planned capacity of an OpenAI-associated Texas facility — making it among the world’s largest.
Key takeaways
- Reopening does not mean immediate normalcy: expect phased agency restarts, delayed data releases, travel disruptions, and the slow resumption of services tied to funding flows (e.g., SNAP).
- Export-control enforcement matters: loopholes via third-country transfers can enable access to advanced U.S. tech; policy clarification is likely and could reshape how global supply chains operate for AI hardware.
- The Epstein document fight remains a politically charged issue that will play out in House votes and public messaging even if practical legal change is unlikely.
- Large-scale AI infrastructure is advancing fast — including projects that increasingly use AI not just as a workload but as the designer/operator of the infrastructure itself.
Notable quotes
- Rep. Adelita Grijalva on signing the petition: “With my signing, we move one step closer to the truth… survivors deserve their day of justice and the American people demand it.”
- President Trump/White House: accused Democrats of leaking Epstein emails as “another distraction campaign” tied to the government reopening.
- WSJ reporting paraphrase: “Directly sending those [NVIDIA] chips to China [is] not allowed. But if they’re sent to a third country like Indonesia, in many cases, yes, they can do that totally legally.”
What to watch next (action items)
- Monitor announcements from the Bureau of Labor Statistics about rescheduled economic releases (CPI and labor data).
- Airlines and travel advisories for lingering operational impacts.
- State announcements on SNAP funding timelines and distribution.
- House floor schedule and any vote on compelling release of Epstein documents; potential Senate/White House response.
- U.S. export-control clarifications or new rules addressing third-country reexports of advanced chips.
- Progress and announcements on the South Korea AI-designed data center (permits, partners, timeline).
Related WSJ/podcast references
- This episode mentions WSJ’s What's News podcast series on alternative economic indicators (episode on copper prices).
- Markets Podcast from Goldman Sachs and sponsor messages (Viking, Adobe) were included in the episode.