As U.S. government shutdown looms, Trump warns of mass layoffs

Trump warns of federal layoffs

The United States is on the brink of a government shutdown after the Senate failed to extend funding past midnight on Tuesday, raising fears of widespread layoffs across the federal workforce.

The 55–45 Senate vote fell short of the 60 required to advance the stopgap measure, virtually guaranteeing that government operations will grind to a halt on Wednesday. Essential services such as law enforcement and air traffic control will continue, but most other agencies will scale back, disrupting services from routine food inspections to the release of the monthly jobs report.

President Donald Trump escalated tensions by threatening further cuts to federal jobs if the shutdown proceeds. “Well, the Democrats want to shut it down. So when you shut it down, you have to do layoffs. So we’d be laying off a lot of people that are going to be very affected, and the Democrats, they’re going to be Democrats,” he said at the White House.

The warning comes amid the largest exodus of government staff in eight decades. More than 150,000 workers are already due to leave federal payrolls this week under buyout schemes, while tens of thousands more have been dismissed since the start of the year. Critics say the looming shutdown, combined with Trump’s threats, risks accelerating a “brain drain” that will weaken public services long after funding is restored.

Ahead of Tuesday’s vote, Trump told reporters, “We’ll be laying off a lot of people. They’re going to be Democrats.” His remarks followed memos issued by several agencies, including the Justice Department and Social Security Administration, blaming Democrats for the impasse — a departure from norms designed to shield civil servants from partisan disputes.

Democrats have insisted that any spending bill include expanded health care subsidies, while Republicans argue such provisions should be dealt with separately. With the House of Representatives out of session, a last-minute deal appears unlikely.

Senator Catherine Cortez Masto, one of three Democrats who voted for the Republican-backed bill, warned the shutdown would “hand even more power to this reckless administration.”

Analysts caution that even a brief shutdown could inflict severe financial pain on hundreds of thousands of federal employees, many of whom live paycheque to paycheque. While back pay is typically approved once operations resume, families may struggle in the interim with rent, childcare and other bills, underscoring the human toll of partisan deadlock on Capitol Hill.