Trump adviser: Layoffs will start if shutdown negotiations are "going nowhere"

"Hassett signaled on CNN's "State of the Union" on Sunday that layoffs will start "if the president decides that the negotiations are absolutely going nowhere." He said he's hopeful "we can get the Democrats to see that it's just common sense to avoid layoffs like that." If Democrats are "reasonable once they get back into town on Monday," Hassett said, then he sees "no reason for those layoffs.""

"That messaging war has seen the Trump administration using government websites to air their political grievances on Democrats, who have been quick to point out that Republicans hold a trifecta in Washington. State of play: Trump said in a Thursday social media post that he'd meet with Vought to discuss "which of the many Democrat Agencies" should "be cut." Late that night, he posted an AI-generated video framing Vought as the shutdown "reaper" in a musical parody."

OMB Director Russell Vought said the administration would start firing workers within a day or two amid a government shutdown, though no mass layoffs have occurred yet. Economic adviser Kevin Hassett signaled that layoffs would begin if the president judged negotiations "absolutely going nowhere" and expressed hope Democrats would act reasonably to avoid cuts. The shutdown prompted partisan messaging battles, including use of government websites to criticize Democrats and a presidential social media post about cutting "Democrat Agencies" alongside an AI-generated parody video. Labor unions sued over what they called unlawful threats, and federal officials warned that firing workers during a shutdown could violate appropriations rules.

Read at Axios