Judge Halts Trump governance’s Shutdown Layoffs
A federal judge has issued a temporary restraining order pausing layoffs of federal employees initiated during the ongoing government shutdown. The order came Friday following a lawsuit filed by the American Federation of Government Employees and the AFL-CIO, who argued that implementing layoffs during a funding lapse was not an essential government function.
The unions contended that the shutdown did not justify mass firings, especially as many federal workers were already furloughed without pay. their case was bolstered by public statements from President Donald Trump and Russell Vought, the White House budget chief, which they claimed demonstrated politically motivated intentions behind the layoffs, citing Trump’s comments about targeting “Democrat agencies.”
A Justice department lawyer argued the unions should first present their claims to a federal labor board. However, Judge Illston granted the restraining order, which the Trump administration is expected to appeal.
The layoffs were already underway at several major departments. Notices were being issued to approximately 1,446 employees at the Treasury Department – representing over a quarter of the planned cuts - and between 1,100 and 1,200 at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), though HHS later stated it planned to lay off roughly half that number.
Other departments also announced planned cuts: the Department of Education and the Department of Housing and Urban development intended to lay off at least 400 employees each. The Departments of Commerce, Energy, Housing and Urban Development, and Homeland Security each planned reductions ranging from 176 to 315 employees.
Russell Vought had indicated the administration aimed to cut more than 10,000 federal workers in total during the shutdown, stating the initial 4,000 layoffs were “just a snapshot” and expected to ”get much higher.” He emphasized the administration’s intention to “stay on offense for the American taxpayer” and suggested the final number of layoffs could “be somewhere north of 10,000.”
The government shutdown entered its third week on Wednesday,with the Senate failing for the ninth time to pass a resolution to reopen it. Republicans, controlling both houses of Congress and the White House, blame Democrats for the impasse, urging them to pass a “clean” funding resolution maintaining current spending levels. Democrats, though, remain unified in their demand for a resolution addressing rising healthcare costs for lower-income Americans. Republicans need 60 votes to pass the resolution,requiring support from some Democrats,which has so far been unsuccessful.
