Today’s edition of quick hits.

* If this reporting is correct, it’s fresh evidence of systemic problems at the FBI: “Kash Patel, the F.B.I. director, temporarily halted some cooperation with the agency’s counterpart in Canada this month after the nation’s public broadcaster reminded its journalists of a longstanding policy not to refer to the Sept. 11 attacks as ‘terrorism’ without attribution to experts, according to multiple officials with knowledge of the event.”

* The White House continues to do what Beijing wants it to do: “The State Department said Thursday that the Trump administration was moving forward with the sale of 48 advanced F-35 fighter jets to Saudi Arabia, despite internal reports by U.S. intelligence agencies that China could acquire or steal the warplane’s technology.”

* The controversy surrounding the “slush fund” isn’t over just yet: “A federal judge in Virginia appeared deeply skeptical of the Trump administration’s effort to dismiss the most successful legal challenge to the $1.8 billion ‘anti-weaponization’ fund, saying the legal issues surrounding the fund are ‘still alive and kicking.’”

* Speaking of ongoing Justice Department controversies: “The Justice Department filed a notice of appeal Thursday night in response to a federal judge ordering Attorney General Todd Blanche to turn over handwritten FBI notes from interviews with a woman who accused President Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein of sexually abusing her when she was a teenager.”

* Hegseth’s testosterone policy continues to evolve: “The Pentagon has republished clinical guidance on its testosterone screening program for all male service members aged 30 and older, outlining details of the policy that has raised questions among some experts over its scientific basis. The original guidelines were briefly published in early September, but then rescinded for updates.”

* A closely watched ICE case: “An immigration officer pleaded not guilty Friday to federal charges that he lied to the FBI about being attacked before he shot and wounded a Venezuelan man during the immigration crackdown in Minneapolis early this year. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer Christian Castro appeared before a U.S. magistrate judge after prosecutors indicted him this month on six federal counts of making false statements about the Jan. 14 shooting of Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis.”

* It’s not just the Kennedy Center: “Ousted U.S. Institute of Peace board members filed an urgent motion in a D.C. federal appeals court Thursday to block President Donald Trump from carving his name into the face of the organization’s downtown headquarters.”

Have a safe weekend.

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