Donald Trump appears set to threaten a jobs bloodbath over the federal workforce if the Democrats fail to agree a deal to end the government shutdown.
The freeze, which has halted non-essential functions of government, began at 12.01am on Wednesday after the two sides failed to reach a deal on funding.
Russell Vought, director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), met with House Republicans to discuss DOGE-style cuts today.
He warned that layoffs would start in the next two days, that today is the final day of military pay and that there would be no new enrollees in the USDA’s Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC).
The Trump appointee is responsible for some three million workers as head of the OMB, which decides who continues working, who is furloughed and which services must continue during shutdowns.
Vought previously warned agencies to get ready for a ‘reduction in force notices for all employees’, specifically highlighting departments and programs that he referred to as ‘not consistent with the president’s priorities.’
In an OMB memo sent last Wednesday, the White House asked federal agencies to produce a list of ‘reductions in force’ – translating to lay-offs for employees whose salaries aren’t paid using the Big Beautiful Bill, obligatory funds. This also included ‘programs and projects’ that are not consistent with ‘the president’s priorities.’
In a sign that he is playing hardball, Vought — a staunch conservative and architect of think-tank Project 2025 — announced today that he was putting $18billion in New York City infrastructure projects on hold to prevent funds ‘flowing based on unconstitutional DEI principles.’
The funding freeze targets the districts of Democrat lawmakers including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries who are leading the obstruction against Trump’s agenda.
Schumer dismissed Vought’s threat to government employees last week as ‘an attempt at intimidation.’
Trump continued provoking democratic leaders last night, taking to truth social, posting an AI video showing Democrat lawmaker Hakeem Jeffries with a cartoonish sombrero and handlebar mustache, trash-talking the democratic party as Latin music plays in the background with President Trump’s doppelgängers as the mariachi band
Vought instructed federal agencies to begin implementing their contingency plans for a structured shutdown on Wednesday
‘This is nothing new and has nothing to do with funding the government. These unnecessary firings will either be overturned in court or the administration will end up hiring the workers back, just like they did as recently as today,’ he said.
Meanwhile, Trump warned last night: ‘We’re doing well as a country, so the last thing we want to do is shut it down, but a lot of good can come down from shutdowns. We can get rid of a lot of things that we didn’t want.’
He also continued provoking democratic leaders, posting an AI video showing Jeffries with a cartoonish sombrero and handlebar mustache, trash-talking the Democratic party as Latin music plays in the background with the president’s doppelgängers as the mariachi band.
‘Hours away from a shutdown, which we don’t want, the American people don’t want, the president is busy trolling away on the internet like a ten-year-old,’ Schumer vented on the Senate floor, adding that this is exactly the reason why Americans are going to blame him if the government shuts down.
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson said today that the pain of this shutdown will be felt across all areas as long as it goes on.
‘Democrats have dragged our country into another reckless shutdown… whether it ends is up to them,’ Johnson said at a conference earlier today.
The party are demanding billions of renewed spending on Obamacare after it was slashed in the Big Beautiful Bill.
JD Vance said on Fox and Friends on Wednesday morning: ‘Re-open the government — and then we can talk Obamacare premiums.’
The vice-president urged Democrats to join the Republicans’ continuing resolution to keep funding the government and in return he would work with them on extending insurance subsidies for the Affordable Care Act.
‘But only after they’ve reopened the government,’ Vance said. ‘You can’t reward this exercise in hostage taking, which is what we would be doing if we allow the government opening to be conditional on the Democrats’ policy disagreement.’
Groups advocating for hundreds of thousands of federal employees have taken legal action over the administration’s warnings to dismiss government workers during the shutdown
The shutdown cuts is also bleeding into other departments, such as the US Department of Transportation
Labor unions are now suing the Trump administration in response to the threatened job cuts.
Groups advocating for hundreds of thousands of federal employees have taken legal action over the administration’s warnings to dismiss government workers during the shutdown.
The lawsuit was created right ahead of the funding deadline at midnight by the American Federation of Government Employees and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. In the court case, they argue that the president’s actions go against the law and are ‘arbitrary and capricious.’
The court filing specifically calls out Vought, and the Office of Personnel Management director Scott Kupor.
‘Federal workers do the work of the people and playing games with their livelihoods is cruel and unlawful,’ said Skye Perryman, president and chief executive of Democracy Forward.
At the eleventh hour on Tuesday, bi-partisan efforts to extend government funding was rejected by the Senate, resulting in the shutdown.
The government ran out of funds after the Senate failed to pass two separate measures: a Democrat-supported bill aimed at prolonging subsidies under the Affordable Care Act and restoring Medicaid funding, and a Republican-backed temporary funding proposal intended to keep the government operating for an additional seven weeks.
After the failure of both proposals, Vought instructed federal agencies to begin implementing their contingency plans for a structured shutdown.
