Vice President JD Vance on Sunday said there will be deeper cuts to the federal workforce the longer the government shutdown goes on, adding to the uncertainty facing hundreds of thousands who are already furloughed without pay amid the stubborn stalemate in Congress.
Vance warned that as the federal shutdown entered its 12th day, the new cuts would be “painful,” even as he said the Trump administration worked to ensure that the military is paid this week and some services would be preserved for low-income Americans, including food assistance.
Still, hundreds of thousands of government workers have been furloughed in recent days and, in a court filing on Friday, the Office of Management and Budget said well over 4,000 federal employees would soon be fired in conjunction with the shutdown.
“The longer this goes on, the deeper the cuts are going to be,” Vance said on Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures.” “To be clear, some of these cuts are going to be painful. This is not a situation that we relish. This is not something that we’re looking forward to, but the Democrats have dealt us a pretty difficult set of cards.”
Labor unions have already filed a lawsuit to prevent the aggressive cuts being implemented by the Trump administration, claiming they go beyond the usual protocols during a government shutdown, fueling further tensions between the two major parties.
The shutdown commenced on Oct. 1 after Democrats rejected a short-term funding fix and demanded the inclusion of extensions for federal health insurance subsidies, set to expire soon. This stalemate has now turned into a battlefield, with both parties blaming each other while trying to maintain political points.
Republicans, including Trump, insist that they are open to negotiations regarding the subsidies but demand the government reopens first. Meanwhile, the House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries expressed willingness to meet but criticized the Republicans for a “my-way-or-the-highway” approach.
The impact of the shutdown has already begun to ripple, with tens of thousands of employees from various federal departments expected to receive layoff notices. Democratic leaders claim these firings are illegal and unnecessary, arguing that the administration does not have to pursue such aggressive measures.
As the stalemate continues, both sides seem unwilling to budge, leaving affected parties in a state of uncertainty as thousands of federal workers face an uncertain future.
