October 2

FDA approves second generic mifepristone amid GOP pressure

The FDA approved Evita, a second generic version of mifepristone (the primary abortion pill), on October 2, 2025, expanding access to medication abortion. The approval came despite ongoing Republican congressional efforts to withdraw the drug's approval entirely and active pressure on the FDA from anti-abortion groups. The generic approval was expected to lower costs and expand access through mail-order pharmacy networks.

Trump Plans Mass Federal Layoffs Using Shutdown as Leverage

President Trump announced plans to use the October 2025 government shutdown as an opportunity to execute mass federal employee layoffs, framing furloughed workers as redundant. OMB Director Russell Vought circulated guidance suggesting agencies identify positions for elimination rather than bringing all furloughed employees back when funding resumed. The plan prompted immediate legal challenges from federal employee unions.

Congress Overrides Reagan's Veto of Anti-Apartheid Act, Imposing Sanctions on South Africa

On October 2, 1986, the U.S. Congress overrides President Reagan's veto of the Comprehensive Anti-Apartheid Act, imposing economic sanctions on South Africa's apartheid government. The vote is 313-83 in the House and 78-21 in the Senate, representing a massive bipartisan rebuke of Reagan's policy of "constructive engagement" with the white minority government. Reagan argues that sanctions will harm Black South Africans and that quiet diplomacy is more effective. Critics, including the Congressional Black Caucus and the broader civil rights movement, argue Reagan's policy provides cover for apartheid. His veto — and the override — becomes a defining illustration of Reagan's consistent pattern of siding against racial justice when political interests align: his opposition to the Civil Rights Act, the Voting Rights Act's extension, and now apartheid sanctions all follow the same logic of states' rights and non-intervention over federal anti-discrimination action.