Trump Vows to Leverage Government Shutdown for Permanent Cuts to Democratic Priorities
WASHINGTON, D.C. - October 9, 2025 – President Donald Trump declared Thursday that his administration intends to utilize the ongoing government shutdown as a means to permanently eliminate government programs favored by Democrats, escalating the stakes in the current funding impasse.
“We’re only cutting Democrat programs,” Trump stated during a Cabinet meeting at the White House. He clarified that the targeted programs are “very popular Democrat programs that aren’t popular with Republicans, frankly.”
The President reiterated his blame of Democrats for the shutdown, now in its ninth day, stating they will ”get a little taste of their own medicine.” This threat builds upon comments made last week, where Trump suggested the shutdown presented an “unprecedented chance” to slash “Democrat Agencies” in a post on Truth Social.
The administration has already begun implementing cuts. Russell Vought, Director of the Office of Management and Budget, announced a freeze on approximately $18 billion in funding for New York City infrastructure projects on the first day of the shutdown. Roughly $8 billion in climate-related funding earmarked for Democratic-leaning states was also canceled. Vought subsequently announced a hold on $2.1 billion in funding for a Chicago transit project. Reports indicate the administration is considering canceling an additional $12 billion allocated to clean energy projects.
The shutdown commenced on october 1st following a failure by Republican and Democratic congressional leaders to agree on appropriations bills to fund the government beyond the end of the fiscal year. Republicans are advocating for a stopgap measure to fund the government at current levels through November 21st, while Democrats are demanding the inclusion of additional healthcare protections, specifically an extension of Affordable Care Act premium tax credits set to expire at yearS end. Repeated attempts to pass compromise legislation in the Senate have failed.
