Overview

• After White House talks ended without a deal, the vice president told reporters the country is heading toward a partial government shutdown starting Oct. 1.
• House Republicans passed a continuing resolution on Sept. 19 to fund the government through Nov. 21, but the Senate blocked it and any measure needs at least 60 votes with some Democratic support.
• Japan’s National Police Agency launched its dedicated “Tokuryu” investigative structure on Oct. 1 to target anonymous, mobile criminal groups with concentrated enforcement.
• Police actions also advanced in separate cases with the arrest of a 34‑year‑old Tokyo elementary school teacher in a child voyeurism probe, the arrest of a 31‑year‑old foster father in Okinawa on suspicion of assault, and an investigation into a suspected special‑fraud loss in the Hakodate area.
• From Oct. 1, companies in Japan must ask workers, including parents of pre‑school children, about work‑style preferences to support balancing jobs and childcare, while Keizai Doyukai’s representative secretary resigned and LDP leadership campaigns intensified for lawmakers’ votes.