Washington: US Vice-President JD Vance has warned that additional workforce cuts could be imminent if the ongoing government shutdown is not resolved soon.
Vance stated that, “The longer this goes on, the deeper the cuts are going to be. To be clear, some of these cuts are going to be painful.” The current impasse began on October 1, after Democrats rejected a short-term funding bill that excluded federal health insurance subsidies. Democrats are demanding that the budget include an extension of subsidies under the Affordable Care Act.
Hundreds of thousands of federal employees are already on leave without pay as the shutdown approaches its third week. No congressional vote is scheduled that could reopen the government. The Trump administration announced that seven agencies, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), had started laying off over 4,000 staff.
However, a US Health Department spokesperson later confirmed that some CDC layoff notices were sent in error. Out of about 1,300 CDC workers initially notified of layoffs, approximately 700 were reinstated, according to the employees’ union.
Essential workers, such as federal law enforcement officers and air traffic controllers, continue working without pay. Military personnel are being treated as an exception. US President Trump directed Secretary of War Pete Hegseth to secure available funds to pay troops this week. The Department of Defence will use around $8 billion from unobligated research development testing and evaluation funds to ensure service members are paid by October 15 if the shutdown persists, a Pentagon official said.
The political standoff remains tense. Senator Mark Kelly, an Arizona Democrat, reiterated that he will not back down from the demand to reinstate federal healthcare subsidies immediately. Kelly added that, “Republicans don’t have to do this, they don’t have to punish people.” Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, however, confirmed he will not support the extension of subsidies.
Vance placed responsibility on Democrats for the current situation. Vance remarked that, “This is not a situation we relish, [these layoffs] are not something we’re looking forward to, but the Democrats have dealt us a pretty difficult set of cards.”
As the shutdown drags on, more government services are feeling the impact. Several Smithsonian museums, research centres, and the National Zoo in Washington, DC, closed due to lack of funding.
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