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* Justice Department proceeds with largest restructuring in two decades * Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces to be closed * ATF-DEA merger not included amid bipartisan backlash * (Updates with responses from DOJ) By Sarah N. Lynch WASHINGTON, Oct 2 (Reuters) – The U.S. Justice Department is closing a task force that took on drug cartels and an office that aimed to ease racial tensions, in a reorganization that drops a plan to merge the nation's top drug and gun law enforcement agencies, documents seen by Reuters show. The most sweeping reorganization of the DOJ in two decades, which Attorney General Pam Bondi approved in September, will cut about 275 positions, leading to the elimination of or involuntary re-assignment of about 140 employees, the documents show. "Reduction in force" letters to employees whose roles will be affected in the units that are to be closed were due to be sent out earlier this week, other government documents seen by Reuters showed. The DOJ said the changes are designed to "promote efficiencies and effective governance," the documents show. The plan has drawn criticism from congressional Democrats and from former department employees, who say it could hurt critical work. In a statement, the Justice Department said the reductions in force "will save the Department over $11 million and further President Trump’s mission of having a federal government that’s more efficient and effective for the American people." President Donald Trump's administration has embarked on a sweeping campaign to remake the federal government, sharply cutting back international aid and environmental regulation, while redirecting a wide range of federal resources towards an immigration crackdown. The documents do not include a plan, first reported in March, to merge the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. That idea faced a bipartisan backlash in Congress, as well as resistance from DEA and ATF employees and opposition from both gun control and gun rights organizations. It was not clear whether the merger could be reconsidered at a future time. A department official said the proposed merger is part of the fiscal 2026 budget, which has not yet been approved by Congress. The plan approves closing the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces, a prosecutor-led inter-agency office created in the 1980s during Ronald Reagan's presidency to tackle major drug cartels. It also shutters the Community Relations Service, an office that for 60 years has helped mediate racial and ethnic tensions across the United States, and a unit that helps ensure Americans have access to legal aid known as the Office for Access to Justice, the documents show. In addition, it merges the Tax Division into the department's Criminal and Civil divisions, in a move that will cost at least $3.1 million, the records seen by Reuters show. Senator Chris Van Hollen, a Maryland Democrat who sits on the appropriations panel that helps set the Justice Department's budget, told the department in a September 24 letter he objected to all of the changes and accused the department of carrying out the changes without congressional approval. "Despite the clear lack of approval, the Department executed many controversial spend plan proposals anyway," he wrote. "This is not normal." Stacey Young, a former department attorney who founded the non-profit advocacy group Justice Connection, says the changes could impede the department's law-enforcement mission, including drug prosecutions. "Americans will feel the harm of this administration's slash-and-burn approach to governing," she said. "This isn't a reorganization — it's a decimation of some of DOJ's most vital work." The effort to close the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces surprised current and former officials, since the types of cases it oversees fall in line with the Trump administration's priorities to pursue major drug-trafficking organizations such as the Sinaloa Cartel, according to sources familiar with the matter. A Justice Department official noted that the task force's ongoing criminal cases have since been transferred to a newly created Homeland Security Task Force, and said the structural changes will eliminate "more than $41 million in bureaucratic spending." Other changes in the reorganization plan include merging the DOJ office that serves as the United States representative for the international law enforcement alliance INTERPOL into the U.S. Marshals Service, the documents show. In the Criminal Division, meanwhile, the DOJ is merging its two sections that handle drug cases and money-laundering cases. Offices that handle criminal consumer protection cases and human-trafficking prosecutions will also be merged into the Criminal Division. (Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch; editing by Scott Malone and Alistair Bell)

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(Corrects typo in headline, no change in text) ROTTERDAM, Netherlands, Oct 2 (Reuters) – Aston Villa made it two wins from two in the Europa League with a 2-0 victory away to Feyenoord on Thursday, where second half goals from Emiliano Buendia and John McGinn earned the visitors three hard earned points in Rotterdam. Unai Emery's side followed up their 1-0 success over Bologna with another win, but Villa needed to weather a first half storm from the hosts before coming out on top. Villa were forced into a change before kick-off, with Marco Bizot replacing keeper Emi Martinez, and the late call-up was a busy man in the opening half. Bizot twice denied Anis Hadj Moussa and pulled off an impressive save from Luciano Valente, with Villa's Ian Maatsen making a goal-line clearance. Villa came close early in the second half, with Evann Guessand's strike coming off the post and they took the lead in the 61st minute. Boubacar Kamara layed the ball off to Buendia at the edge of the area who took one touch to control and made no mistake as his shot flew into the bottom corner, and 11 minutes from time Villa wrapped up the win. Donyell Malen raced into the box before losing possession but McGinn was there to pounce and smash the ball to the net and Villa are on maximum points after two games. (Reporting by Trevor Stynes, editing by Pritha Sarkar)

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* Rule required disclosing fees during booking process * Airlines said Transportation Department lacked authority * Biden administration-era rule yet to be implemented (Adds background from case and airlines, attempts to obtain comment) By Jonathan Stempel Oct 2 (Reuters) – A federal appeals court on Thursday said it will reconsider its recent holding that the U.S. Department of Transportation had authority to require airlines to fully disclose fees upfront when passengers book flights. In a brief order, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans said its 17 active judges will sit "en banc" to review the January 28 decision by a three-judge panel. Several major airlines are challenging a consumer-friendly rule issued in April 2024 during the Biden administration, which required airlines and ticket agents to disclose "ancillary fees" such as baggage charges during the booking process. Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, JetBlue, United Airlines and three trade groups including Airlines for America objected, saying federal law gave the Transportation Department no power to issue such rules. The appeals court put the rule on hold in July 2024. In its January decision, the court said the Transportation Department had authority to write fee disclosure rules that address "unfair or deceptive practices" by airlines. It nonetheless said the agency should have let airlines comment on a study it used to assess the fee rule's potential impact. The appeals court returned the matter to the Transportation Department, instead of vacating the rule. In seeking en banc review, the airlines said adopting the rule would "upend the way airlines interact with their customers, at great cost, and with no demonstrated benefit." The Transportation Department opposed a rehearing, saying the appeals court "properly exercised its discretion" in remanding the rule. Lawyers for the airlines did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Airlines for America declined to comment. Neither the Transportation Department nor the U.S. Department of Justice immediately responded to requests for comment. The 5th Circuit is one of the most conservative federal appeals courts. It did not say when it will hear oral arguments. The case is Airlines for America et al v Department of Transportation, 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, No. 24-60231. (Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Jamie Freed)

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* Bessent says US 'not putting money' in Argentina * US government shutdown, GOP pushback, raise concerns * Peso currency down 6.7% this week vs US dollar (Recasts first paragraph, adds peso in paragraph two, updates prices throughout) By Rodrigo Campos and Libby George NEW YORK/LONDON, Oct 2 (Reuters) – Argentina's international dollar bonds rose in a volatile session on Thursday after U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the U.S. is "not putting money into Argentina" shortly after saying that upcoming in-person discussions in Washington would "meaningfully advance" the country's pledge of financial support for President Javier Milei's government. The peso was little changed throughout the day at about 1,424 per dollar, hinting at intervention from the Argentine treasury. Local stocks rose 2.5%. Bonds, which rose roughly two cents after Bessent's initial comments, traded negative shortly after his "no money" statement, but crawled higher to end up over one cent on the day. Milei, a right-wing leader whose reforms have made him a darling of the Trump administration, had said Wednesday night that part of the negotiations with the U.S. included purchases of bonds in the secondary market and "profit-sharing." Bessent said last week the U.S. is in negotiations over a $20 billion swap line with Argentina's central bank and stands ready to do what is needed to support the South American country. The 2030 maturity was trading up over a cent by 2030 GMT, after rising more than 2 cents earlier and paring all its gains. Argentina's bonds are down 15% this year to Wednesday at the index level after having risen over 100% in 2024. The peso is down almost 30% to the dollar year-to-date, even as the government has stepped in to defend it in the spot market and retains some FX controls. Analysts consider it overvalued, and a Reuters poll this week shows it is expected to devalue further after the October 26 midterm election. The IMF, a big supporter of Milei's economic reform program, said Thursday Argentina needs to commit to a fiscal anchor and a consistent monetary policy and foreign exchange framework, and build "broad political support to secure the implementation of the authorities' ambitious reform agenda." MARKET IS TESTING TREASURY RESOLVE Argentina's financial markets, which rallied strongly after Bessent's initial support pledge last month, have fallen in recent days amid uncertainty over U.S. backing and concerns over the fate of Milei's reformist agenda after mid-term legislative elections later this month. The local peso, which last week strengthened close to 11% against the U.S. dollar, is down 6.7% so far this week. "The market is testing the U.S.'s resolve to help Argentina," said Aaron Gifford, senior emerging market sovereign analyst at T. Rowe Price, adding that the lack of details – and uncertainty caused by the U.S. government shutdown – were weighing on bond prices. The U.S. government shutdown, in its second day, added to worries over the country's plans for Argentina, while pushback from some U.S. Republicans also raised red flags. Last month, in an effort to secure foreign currency, Argentina's government temporarily suspended export taxes on grains, enabling $7 billion in sales in just a few days. The sales calmed markets temporarily, but also rankled some U.S. Republicans, such as powerful Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley, who in a post on X questioned why the U.S. would "bail out" Argentina "while they take American soybean producers' biggest market." "Washington is highly polarized, and the last thing anybody wants to hear in the White House is someone saying that you're using U.S. taxpayer money to bail out that hedge funds the bought the Argentine debt," said Joydeep Mukherji, managing director of sovereign ratings for S&P Global. And while many thought the U.S. support would buy Milei time to make it to the election, markets have proven more fickle. "The short tax break on commodity exports – it worked for a few days, but not anymore," said Viktor Szabo, portfolio manager with Aberdeen. "Now the expectation is that they will have to devalue after the midterms, so everyone is frontrunning it." (Reporting by Libby George and Rodrigo Campos, additional reporting by Marc Jones in London; Editing by Amanda Cooper, Chizu Nomiyama, Marguerita Choy and Diane Craft)

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THE REUTERS MAJOR DAYBOOK Friday, October 3, 2025 —– The daybook editor is Timothy Ryan (reachable at 202-843-6282 or Tim.Ryan@TR.com or DCDaybook@yahoo.com). Subscribers: For any problems in receiving daybook content, call 1-800-435-0101 and hit option 5. Content is intended for guidance purposes only and should not be cited on the record. —– —– PRESIDENT TRUMP'S SCHEDULE (early schedule) Not immediately available. VICE PRESIDENT VANCE'S SCHEDULE (early schedule) Not immediately available. SECRETARY OF STATE MARCO RUBIO'S SCHEDULE (early schedule) Attends closed meetings at the State Department and the White House. FIRST LADY MELANIA TRUMP'S SCHEDULE (early schedule) Not immediately available. CONGRESS THE SENATE Meets at 11:30 a.m. Note: At 1:30 p.m., the Senate is expected to proceed to up to four votes on: 1) adoption of S.Res. 412; 2) a cloture vote on the motion to proceed to S. 2882, the "Continuing Appropriations and Extensions and Other Matters Act, 2026" – sponsored by Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.); 3) a cloture vote on the motion to proceed to H.R. 5371, "the Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act, 2026"; and 4) a motion to proceed to legislative session (possible voice vote). Committees No meetings are scheduled. THE HOUSE Meets at 3:30 p.m. in a pro forma session. Committees No meetings are scheduled. ADVISORIES (TRADE-LEGAL) ADVISORY — The Washington International Trade Association (WITA) hosts an online seminar to discuss "U.S. and international trade law and policy." Highlights 9 a.m.: Jeff Gerrish, former deputy U.S. trade representative for Asia, Europe, the Middle East and industrial competitiveness, discusses "Trade Law Primer (Sections 122, 201, 232, 301 International Emergency Economic Powers Act and update on legal challenges)." 10 a.m.: Former deputy assistant to the president for international economic affairs Kelly Ann Shaw, former deputy director at the National Economic Council; and Everett Eissenstat, former deputy director at the National Economic Council and former assistant U.S. trade representative for the Americas, discuss "The New Dynamics in Trade Policy in the Executive Branch and the Interagency Process in the Trump Administration." Contact: 202-312-1600 Note: Register at https://www.wita.org/events/2025-wita-virtual-intensive-trade-seminar/. (SCOTUS-CRIME-ROSKE/SENTENCING) ADVISORY– At 10 a.m., U.S. District Court Judge Deborah Boardman presides at the sentencing of Nicholas Roske, the California man arrested on June 7, 2022 after he showed up with a handgun, knife, and zip ties near the Maryland home of Supreme Court Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh. In April, Roske pleaded guilty to attempted assassination of a Supreme Court justice. Location: U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, 6500 Cherrywood Lane, courtroom 4A, Greenbelt, Md. Contact: 301-344-0637 or 410-962-3228 or MDD_PublicInformation@mdd.uscourts.gov Note: For further details, go to: https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/california-man-pleads-guilty-attempted-murder-supreme-court-justice-maryland. (SCOTUS-PREVIEW) ADVISORY — At 12Noon, the Federalist Society holds an online forum to discuss the upcoming October Term cases of the Supreme Court. Ohio deputy solicitor general Jana Bosch; Amanda Gray Dixon, counsel at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty; Michael Morley, assistant professor at the Florida State University College of Law; Matthew Cavedon, director of the Cato Institute's Project on Criminal Justice; Baker Hostetler LLP partner Richard Raile; and Erielle Azerrad of counsel at Holtzman Vogel Baran Torchinsky & Joseflak PLLC, preview oral arguments in: Villarreal v. Texas and Berk v. Choy (on October 6); Barrett v. U.S. and Chiles v. Salazar (on October 7); Bost v. Illinois State Board of Elections and U.S. Postal Service v. Konan (on October 8); Bowe v. U.S. and Ellingburg v. U.S. (October 14); and Case v. Montana and Louisiana v. Callais (on October 15). Contact: 202-822-8138 Note: Register at https://fedsoc.org/events/a-seat-at-the-sitting-october-2025. (IRAN-PAHLAVI-RIGHTS) ADVISORY — At 1 p.m., Reza Pahlavi, exiled crown prince of Iran, discusses "the durability of the Islamic Republic regime, his framework for democratic transition, and the role of the international community in shaping Iran's future" during a Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) online interview forum. Contact: Maddie Van Horn, 202-509-8643 or mvanhorn@cfr.org Note: For a webcast, go to: https://www.youtube.com/live/lf08X37rYRk. GENERAL NEWS EVENTS 9 a.m. — (LEGAL-UN-GENOCIDE-RIGHTS) EVENT — The Center on Human Rights and Humanitarian Law at American University's Washington College of Law and the American University International Law Review sponsor a forum titled, "Crimes Against Humanity, Atrocity, and Genocide Prevention: From Norms To Obligations" to discuss the new treaty on "preventing and punishing crimes against humanity that is under negotiation at the United Nations." Special Adviser to the UN Secretary-General on Responsibility to Protect Mo Bleeker, former special envoy for Dealing with the Past and Prevention of Atrocities at the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs; Alka Pradhan, human rights counsel for Guantanamo Bay detainees at International Criminal Court; Nathaniel Raymond, executive director of the Humanitarian Research Lab; and Juan Mendez, AU professor of human rights law in residence and faculty co-director at the Center for Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, discuss "specific opportunities and developments in international law since the Rome Statute's definition of crimes against humanity entered into force" and "the use of satellite technology in investigations, gender justice, and the nexuses between human rights law obligations and transitional justice processes." Location: American University's Washington College of Law, Warren Building, Terrace Level, Ceremonial Classroom NT01, 4300 Nebraska Ave NW Contact: auilr@wcl.american.edu Note: Register at https://app.registrationguru.net/# !/portal?eventId=79bacddc-cee6-4355-9d62-b493b1c8d1c3. 9 a.m. — (EURASIA-RUSSIA-UKRAINE) EVENT — The Program on New Approaches to Research and Security in Eurasia (PONARS Eurasia) at George Washington University holds its annual Eurasia policy conference to discuss "international affairs in the region, both related to and beyond Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine." Highlights 9 a.m.: Panel on "Domestic Drivers of Foreign Policy." Elizabeth Wishnick of Columbia University discusses "Security Implications of North Korea's Support for Russia's War on Ukraine"; Anar Valiyev, associate professor at ADA University, discusses "Azerbaijan's Foreign Policy in the Wake of Russian Aggression in Ukraine: A New Strategy for Dealing With Moscow"; Scott Radnitz of the University of Washington discusses "How Kyrgyzstan Views Russia Three Years after the Full-Scale Invasion"; Ryhor Nizhnikau of the Finnish Institute of International Affairs discusses "A Bargain with the Devil: Lukashenka's Navigation between Domestic Vulnerabilities and Relations with Russia"; and Melinda Haring, senior adviser at Razom for Ukraine, also speaks. 10:45 a.m.: Panel on "Russia's War in Ukraine." Marlene Laruelle of George Washington University discusses "War as a Social Lift? The Impact of Military Keynesianism on Russian Society"; Anton Shirikov of the University of Kansas discusses "War on Screens: The Full-Scale Invasion of Ukraine in Russian State Media"; Mariya Omelicheva of Georgetown University discusses "Fourth Power? Russia's "War Correspondents and Their Influence on the War in Ukraine"; and Alexandra Yatsyk of the University of Lille discusses "Between Underground and Exile: How Russian Human Right Organizations operate in War-time Russia." 1:30 p.m.: A discussion on "Public Opinion about Peace Negotiations." 3:15 p.m.: A discussion on "Transatlantic Foreign Policy towards Eurasia." Location: GW, Elliott School of International Affairs, 1957 E Street NW, Li…

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