President Trump follows through on threat and begins cutting federal jobs
President Donald Trump’s administration made good on its threat to lay off thousands of federal employees, with government agencies issuing “retrenchment” notices heading into the weekend.
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump vowed to begin laying off federal employees while continuing to pay military personnel as the government shutdown continues.
At least 4,000 civil servants were told on October 10 that they would be laid off, rather than simply furloughed as in past government shutdowns, and the government warned that more were to come.
Meanwhile, civil servants had their pay cut on October 10th, and military personnel were expected to lose their first paycheck on October 15th unless President Trump intervened.
Here is the latest information on the status of the shutdown:
An Economist/YouGov poll conducted Oct. 4-6 found that 41% of Americans say Republicans and Trump are likely to blame for the government shutdown, compared with 30% who blame Congressional Democrats and 23% who don’t blame either side.
The poll found that among respondents who could accurately identify which party controls the majority in Congress, 49% blamed Republicans and 34% blamed Democrats.
The poll was conducted among 1,648 American adults and had a margin of error of about 3.5 percentage points.
The Trump administration has revealed that about 4,000 federal employees have received layoff notices so far. The numbers are detailed in court documents filed by the Justice Department in response to a lawsuit from labor unions representing government employees.
Additional job cuts are planned, a senior administration official told USA TODAY.
The first wave of layoffs included 315 workers at the Department of Commerce. The Ministry of Education has 466 people. The Department of Energy has 187 people. The Department of Health and Human Services has 1,100 to 1,200 people. 442 of the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Ranked 176th in the Department of Homeland Security. The Ministry of Finance has 1,446 people.
As a result of these cuts, the Department of Education’s Bureau of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services disappeared.
The threat that 1.3 service members could miss their first paycheck on October 15 has become a powerful argument for both sides to resolve the impasse.
But President Trump eased pressure to end the standoff quickly by announcing on social media on Oct. 11 that the Pentagon had found money to pay about 1.3 million active-duty military personnel.
“We will not allow Democrats to hold our military and our entire national security hostage with a dangerous government shutdown,” President Trump said.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune said the chamber plans to vote again on the shutdown relief bill on Oct. 14, but that reopening the government still requires support from several Democrats.
The Senate has already failed seven times to approve House Republican bills that would have reopened the government by Nov. 21. Three senators who caucus with Democrats joined Republicans in supporting the bill, but the 55-45 majority fell short of the 60-vote majority needed to end consideration.
Thune (R-South Dakota) continued to blame Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) for the shutdown. Most Democrats are blocking the bill, which aims to restore Medicaid cuts and extend subsidies under the Affordable Care Act. Republicans have said they can negotiate on health care issues once the government reopens.
“Let’s hope five more Democrats join us, because as much as we’ve done a great job so far, there’s so much more we can do once Schumer shuts down,” Thune said on social media.
