Federal shutdown ends with Trump’s signature as Iranian drone incident and Clinton depositions reshape Washington agenda

Funding restored after brief lapse, with Homeland Security talks compressed into a two-week window

President Donald Trump signed a $1.2 trillion spending package on Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026, ending a partial federal government shutdown that began when certain appropriations lapsed over the weekend. The measure funds most federal operations through Sept. 30, 2026, while providing the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) only a short extension through Feb. 13.

The House approved the bill 217–214 earlier Tuesday after the Senate adopted a revised version late last week. The narrow margin reflected a split within both parties, with lawmakers crossing party lines on a vote shaped by disputes over immigration enforcement oversight and DHS authorities.

With the government reopened, the immediate budget fight shifts to DHS, where the temporary extension sets up a compressed negotiating period. Lawmakers are expected to use the remaining days before Feb. 13 to debate accountability measures for federal immigration enforcement, a dispute intensified by recent fatal shootings involving federal officers in Minneapolis that became central to the shutdown standoff.

U.S. military reports Iranian drone shot down near USS Abraham Lincoln

Separately on Tuesday, the U.S. military reported that a Navy fighter jet shot down an Iranian Shahed-139 drone in the Arabian Sea after it approached the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln. U.S. Central Command said the drone continued toward the ship despite steps described as de-escalatory measures, and that the engagement occurred in international waters. No U.S. personnel were reported injured and no U.S. equipment was reported damaged.

The reported shootdown followed another maritime incident the same day in which Iranian forces were accused of harassing a U.S.-flagged, U.S.-crewed merchant vessel transiting the Strait of Hormuz. The twin events added urgency to already elevated U.S.-Iran tensions, as Washington signals deterrence while leaving space for renewed diplomatic contacts.

Clintons agree to testify in House Epstein investigation after contempt pressure

On Capitol Hill, former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton reached an agreement with House Republicans to testify this month in a House Oversight Committee investigation into Jeffrey Epstein. The agreement followed escalating threats of a contempt of Congress vote stemming from a subpoena dispute.

Hillary Clinton is scheduled to appear on Feb. 26, 2026, and Bill Clinton on Feb. 27, 2026, in sessions expected to be conducted as closed-door, transcribed depositions. The arrangement has drawn attention because it would represent the first time Congress has compelled a former U.S. president to testify.

• Government funding: most agencies financed through Sept. 30, 2026; DHS funded through Feb. 13.
• National security: U.S. reports downing an Iranian drone near an aircraft carrier in international waters.
• Oversight: the Clintons set February deposition dates tied to the Epstein investigation after contempt threats.

The convergence of fiscal deadlines, military friction in the Middle East, and high-profile congressional testimony schedules is set to keep Washington’s agenda tightly packed through late February.