President Donald Trump is weighing slashing “thousands” of federal jobs forward of a gathering along with his finances director, Russell Vought, because the White House seems to ratchet up stress on Democrats to finish a authorities shutdown that has entered its second day.
“It’s seemingly going to be within the thousands,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt informed reporters on Thursday, saying that the “complete crew on the White House” was working to determine potential cuts.
READ MORE: Agencies difficulty shutdown-related steering for lenders
“We’re going to take a look at businesses that do not align with the administration’s values, that we really feel are a waste of the taxpayer greenback,” she added.
Leavitt’s feedback got here after Trump on social media earlier Thursday stated he deliberate to satisfy with Vought to “decide which of the various Democrat Agencies, most of that are a political SCAM, he recommends to be reduce, and whether or not or not these cuts might be non permanent or everlasting.”
Republicans have sought to make use of the risk of everlasting cuts to the federal forms to encourage Democrats to vote to reopen the federal government, and the White House has stated firings might occur imminently. But some finances specialists have argued that spending cash to conduct everlasting layoffs throughout a shutdown is against the law.
READ MORE: Shutdown checks lenders’ plans to maintain loans shifting
House Speaker Mike Johnson met with Trump on the White House on Thursday. He earlier defended Trump’s risk, saying that the president has the ability to fireplace workers and reduce spending throughout a shutdown. He pinned blame for the lapse in appropriations on Democrats.
“If they hold the federal government closed it can get increasingly more painful,” Johnson informed reporters. The White House, he added, is “going to look to the administration’s priorities and ensure they’re funded.”
Vought has begun withholding spending for New York City transit tasks and clear power packages in states that voted for Democrat Kamala Harris in 2024.
It’s not but clear what the dimensions of the federal downsizing could possibly be, however Senator Shelley Moore Capito, a West Virginia Republican, predicted there could possibly be sizable cuts.
“Do I feel Russ Vought needs to shrink authorities in a dramatic approach? Absolutely. He’s fairly clear about that,” Capito informed CNBC Thursday.
The White House’s strikes to tug again funding and dismiss federal workers goals to place stress on Democrats to vote to re-open the federal government. The hardball ways go properly past what’s frequent in a shutdown, the place sometimes many federal workers are furloughed after which obtain again pay as soon as the federal government is funded.
The Congressional Budget Office estimates that about 750,000 workers might be furloughed throughout the shutdown at a price of $400 million per day in misplaced compensation.
Political Posturing
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent accused Democrats of negotiating in unhealthy religion over authorities funding.
“The Democrats need to negotiate like terrorists,” Bessent informed CNBC Thursday, including that Republicans are looking for a “clear” extension of authorities funding. Democrats are looking for to incorporate well being care subsidies in that spending invoice.
Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat, informed CBS that Democrats have been “begging” Republicans to barter however thus far there have been “zero” talks as a result of the GOP hasn’t engaged.
A Washington Post ballot discovered that extra voters blame Trump and Republicans for the federal government shutdown than they do Democrats — by a 17-point margin. Independents overwhelmingly aspect with Democrats on the query, however Democrats are additionally extra united: Only 67% of Republicans blame Democrats for the shutdown, whereas 87% of Democrats blame Republicans.
Neither the House nor Senate are scheduled to vote on Thursday, in observance of the Yom Kippur vacation. The Senate is slated to return on Friday, however Senate Republican chief John Thune stated the chamber is “unlikely” to carry votes over the weekend. The House will not return to Washington till Tuesday.
Representative Byron Donalds, a Florida Republican, stated that he expects the deadlock to proceed into early subsequent week, not less than.
“I feel it in all probability goes into subsequent week, could possibly be longer. It’s actually as much as Chuck Schumer,” Donalds stated in an interview on Fox Business Thursday, referring to the Senate Democratic chief.
Democrats are pushing for an extension of Affordable Care Act subsidies that expire on the finish of the yr. Republicans say they need to fund the federal government first earlier than participating in any negotiations on that difficulty.
“None of these shutdowns, whether or not they have been Republican or Democratic impressed, have ever achieved their goal,” Representative Tom Cole, the Oklahoma Republican who chairs the House Appropriations Committee, informed Fox Business. “It’s a very dumb factor to do.”
