Over 4,000 Federal Employees Laid Off in Government Shutdown; Trump Blames Democrats
According to the English section of webangah News Agency, citing Mehr News Agency and Reuters, U.S. President Donald Trump has followed through on his threat to reduce the federal workforce during the ongoing government shutdown and holds Democrats responsible for this decision.
Spokespersons report that layoffs have begun in the Treasury Department, Health and Human Services, internal Revenue Service, as well as deputy offices within the departments of Education, Commerce, and Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity division. However, the exact scope of these layoffs remains unclear. Earlier plans indicated that around 300,000 civilian federal employees would lose their jobs this year as part of a government downsizing campaign initiated by Trump earlier this year.
Speaking at a White house Oval Office event, Trump told reporters, “They started this,” describing the cuts as “Democrat-driven.” Even though Republican lawmakers hold majorities in both chambers of Congress under Trump’s leadership, passing any funding bill requires Democratic votes in the Senate. Democrats demand extensions on health insurance subsidies and argue that healthcare costs will soar for 24 million Americans covered under the Affordable Care Act if those subsidies lapse.
Throughout this partisan deadlock-the shutdown entered its tenth day yesterday-Trump repeatedly threatened federal employee layoffs targeting key agencies favored by Democrats.
The president also ordered suspension of at least $28 billion in infrastructure funding meant for New York, california, and Illinois-states with importent populations supporting Democratic voters and critics of his governance.
The Department of Justice disclosed legal filings stating over 4,200 federal employees across seven agencies have received layoff notices.This includes more than 1,400 workers at treasury and at least 1,100 at health and Human Services.
