Trump eyes cuts to 'Democrat Agencies' in government shutdown

"I can’t believe the Radical Left Democrats gave me this unprecedented opportunity," Trump said in a social media post.

Trump has already frozen federal transit and green-energy funding for Democratic-leaning states and has threatened to fire more federal workers during the shutdown, which began on Wednesday due to a partisan standoff in Congress.

Trump is already on track to push out 300,000 federal workers by the end of the year.

In his post, Trump mentioned Vought's involvement with Project 2025, a plan by the conservative Heritage Foundation that calls for radically downsizing the federal government. Trump's administration has already pursued many aspects of that plan, such as dismantling the Department of Education and curtailing the government's power to fight pollution.

White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said Trump could fire thousands of workers, though she did not provide details. Several federal employee unions have filed a lawsuit to prevent that from happening, but federal courts have allowed layoffs to proceed while similar cases are being litigated.

Senator Patty Murray, top Democrat on the Appropriations Committee, warned Trump that more firings would not help to end the legislative logjam that has shut the government.

“If the president fires a bunch of people, it’s not because of his shutdown—it’s because HE decided to fire them,” Murray, of Washington state, said on social media. "People aren’t negotiating tools & it's sick that the president is treating federal workers like pawns. Making threats and choosing to hurt people won't win my vote.”

The government shutdown, the 15th since 1981, has suspended scientific research, , economic data reports, and a wide range of other activities. Major benefit programs, like Social Security, will continue to send out payments.

A standoff in Congress has frozen about $1.7 trillion in funds for agency operations, which amounts to roughly one-quarter of annual federal spending. Much of the remainder goes to health and retirement programs and interest payments on the growing $37.5 trillion debt.

TWO MILLION WORKERS' PAY SUSPENDED

Pay has been suspended for roughly 2 million federal workers, with roughly 750,000 ordered not to work and others, such as troops and Border Patrol agents, required to work without pay. Many could face personal hardship if the standoff is not resolved before October 15, when the next paychecks are due to be issued. A prolonged shutdown could disrupt air travel, threaten food aid for millions of Americans, and weigh on exports and mortgage applications.

However, past shutdowns have not had a lasting impact on the broader U.S. economy. The longest lasted 35 days in 2018 and 2019, during Trump's first term, due to a dispute over immigration.

The shutdown was triggered at midnight Tuesday, when Democrats and Republicans were unable to agree on a spending bill that would have allowed agency operations to continue past October 1, the start of the new fiscal year. Democrats insist that any funding bill must also extend health subsidies that are due to expire at the end of the year, while Republicans say the two issues must be dealt with separately.

The shutdown will persist at least until Friday, when the Senate next convenes to address the issue. Trump's Republicans hold majorities in both chambers of Congress but Senate rules mean they will need the votes of at least seven Democrats to pass a funding bill.

In the meantime, Trump has made clear he will pile pressure on his opponents by targeting government programs they favor. Democrats have said this amounts to hostage-taking that throws regular Americans out of work and also violates Congress' constitutional authority over federal spending.

Republicans have shown little concern so far, arguing that the administration can prioritize spending as it sees fit if Congress abdicates its responsibility to pass spending bills.