White House Launches Mass Federal Worker Layoffs Amid Ongoing Shutdown

The White House announced Friday that it has begun mass layoffs of federal employees as President Donald Trump escalates pressure on Democrats to resolve the government shutdown that has now entered its third week.

Russ Vought, director of the Office of Management and Budget, confirmed on social media that the administration is moving forward with plans to terminate a portion of the 750,000 public servants currently on unpaid leave. While Vought described the layoffs as “substantial,” specifics on numbers or the departments most affected remain unclear.

Court documents filed Friday revealed that over 4,000 federal workers have already been let go, including more than 1,000 each from the Treasury Department and the Department of Health and Human Services.

President Trump reinforced that the workforce reductions are intended to pressure opposition Democrats, saying the firings would be “a lot” and “Democrat-oriented” as he blamed them for starting the shutdown.

Democratic leaders in Congress have criticized the move, dismissing it as an intimidation tactic unlikely to withstand legal scrutiny. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer condemned the decision, saying, “Russell Vought just fired thousands of Americans with a tweet,” and accused the White House of creating “deliberate chaos.”

As the shutdown drags on, the impact on public services continues to grow, leaving millions of Americans in limbo while negotiations remain stalled.