The Trump administration began laying off thousands of federal workers across a range of government agencies on Friday, the tenth day of the protracted U.S. government shutdown. President Donald Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Friday afternoon that the number of federal workers who will be laid off will “be a lot,” and reiterated his promise that the cuts would be “Democrat-oriented,” targeting programs he claims are favored by Democratic officials.
Reductions in Force Initiated
These permanent job cuts, officially known as “Reductions in Force” (RIFs), are distinct from the temporary furloughing of government workers, who typically return to their positions once a shutdown ends. The layoffs were first announced by Russell Vought, the director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), who wrote on X, “The RIFs have begun.” The OMB soon confirmed his tweet, stating that the cuts are “substantial.”
Layoff notices were issued to workers across various departments, including the Treasury, Health and Human Services (HHS), Commerce, Education, Energy, EPA, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, and Interior. A filing by the Justice Department in a U.S. District Court in San Francisco late Friday revealed that at least 4,000 federal workers received RIF notices, with the Treasury and HHS seeing the largest cuts, at more than 1,100 employees apiece.
The mass firings immediately triggered legal action. The filing came in response to a lawsuit filed on September 30 by two major unions representing federal workers, the American Federation of Government Employees and the American Federation of County, State & Municipal Employees (AFSCME). The lawsuit challenges the legality of the RIFs, and a hearing on the unions’ request for a temporary restraining order to block the layoffs is scheduled for Wednesday in San Francisco.
Lee Saunders, President of AFSCME, strongly condemned the decision: “These mass firings are illegal and will have devastating effects on the services millions of Americans rely on every day. Federal employees should not be bargaining chips in this administration’s political games.” This action began four days after National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett warned that the administration would “start taking sharp measures” if the shutdown continued, placing the blame for the layoffs squarely on Democrats.
Congressional Opposition and Shutdown Context
Laying off government employees permanently is not standard practice during a typical government shutdown. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, blasted the move: “Russell Vought just fired thousands of Americans with a tweet. Let’s be blunt: nobody’s forcing Trump and Vought to do this. They don’t have to do it; they want to.” Schumer characterized the action as a “deliberate chaos” intended to hurt people and suggested Republicans would rather see workers lose their jobs than negotiate to reopen the government. Senator Susan Collins, a Maine Republican who chairs the Senate Appropriations Committee, also publicly opposed the move, stating, “Arbitrary layoffs result in a lack of sufficient personnel needed to conduct the mission of the agency and to deliver essential programs, and cause harm to families.”
Since the shutdown began last week, Vought has also tweeted announcements about the administration freezing and cutting billions of dollars in federal funding for projects located in states and cities controlled by Democratic elected officials. The political stalemate continues because Democratic senators have largely refused to vote for a Republican stopgap funding plan, insisting that any resolution must include an agreement to extend enhanced Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) tax credits. These tax credits are vital as they lower the cost of health insurance plans for millions of Americans. Dueling funding resolutions from Republicans and Democrats failed to pass in the Senate for the seventh time on Thursday. The shutdown is expected to continue until at least early next week, as the Senate is not scheduled to resume business until Tuesday, and Republicans need the votes of at least some Democratic senators to avoid a filibuster on any funding bill.
Author’s Opinion
The Trump administration’s politically driven decision to implement “Reductions in Force” during a government shutdown is a profound, cynical act of weaponizing federal employment for political gain. By permanently dismantling agencies and targeting those perceived as “Democrat-oriented,” the administration transforms a temporary budgetary crisis into a permanent ideological restructuring of the civil service. This action demonstrates a strategic disregard for the legal and ethical separation of the federal workforce from partisan politics, confirming that for this administration, punishing political opposition through bureaucratic means is prioritized over the consistent delivery of essential public services.
Featured image credit: Vitya_maly via GoodFon
For more stories like it, click the +Follow button at the top of this page to follow us.