The United States government shutdown entered its second day on Thursday, with President Donald Trump calling the impasse an “unprecedented opportunity” to accelerate his plans to fire federal workers and downsize government agencies.
Trump announced on social media that he would meet with Russell Vought, the White House budget director and architect of the mass federal layoffs and buyouts.
“I have a meeting today with Russ Vought, he of PROJECT 2025 Fame, to determine which of the many Democrat Agencies, most of which are a political SCAM, he recommends to be cut, and whether or not those cuts will be temporary or permanent,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“I can’t believe the Radical Left Democrats gave me this unprecedented opportunity.”
The shutdown began at midnight on Wednesday after Democrats refused to back a Republican funding plan that demanded healthcare-related concessions.
Since then, Vought has signalled that the administration will use the lapse to enforce layoffs and cut spending.
On Wednesday, he announced the cancellation of around US$18 billion in federal funding for projects linked to Democrats, citing “unconstitutional DEI principles”.
The suspended projects include New York’s Second Avenue subway line and the Hudson River tunnel to New Jersey.
The move prompted outrage from New York Democrats Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries, who said in a joint statement: “Donald Trump is once again treating working people as collateral damage in his endless campaign of chaos and revenge.”
Vought also confirmed that about $8 billion earmarked for 16 Democrat-run states was frozen, describing it as “Green New Scam funding to fuel the Left’s climate agenda”.
At the White House, press secretary Karoline Leavitt warned that “layoffs are imminent” but declined to offer details.
Unlike past shutdowns, where furloughs and back pay were common, this administration is signalling direct dismissals.
Patty Murray, the Senate’s top Democrat on the appropriations committee, criticised the approach: “If the president fires a bunch of people, it’s not because of his shutdown–it’s because HE decided to fire them. People aren’t negotiating tools & it’s sick that the president is treating federal workers like pawns.”
So far, the broader public effects have been limited, with national parks and the Smithsonian museums in Washington DC remaining open, albeit with reduced services.
Congress shows little sign of breaking the stalemate. The House remains out of session, while the Senate will not vote until after the Yom Kippur holiday, prolonging the uncertainty.
