United States President Donald Trump has seized on the government shutdown as an opportunity to reshape the federal workforce and punish detractors, posting on social media his intent to cut what he described as “Democrat agencies”.
On Thursday, Trump used his post on Truth Social to announce he would meet with budget director Russ Vought to talk through “temporary or permanent” spending cuts that could set up a lose-lose dynamic for Democratic lawmakers.
He wrote that he and Vought would determine “which of the many Democrat Agencies” would be cut — continuing their efforts to slash federal spending by threatening mass firings of workers and suggesting “irreversible” cuts to Democratic priorities.
“I can’t believe the Radical Left Democrats gave me this unprecedented opportunity,” Trump said. “They are not stupid people, so maybe this is their way of wanting to, quietly and quickly, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
The post was notable in its explicit embrace of Project 2025, a controversial policy blueprint drafted by the conservative Heritage Foundation that Trump distanced himself from during his 2024 re-election campaign.
The effort aimed to reshape the federal government around right-wing policies, and Democrats repeatedly pointed to its goals to warn of the consequences of a second Trump administration.
Vought on Wednesday offered an opening salvo of the pressure he hoped to put on Democrats. He announced he was withholding $18bn for the Hudson River rail tunnel and Second Avenue subway line in New York City, which have been championed by Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer and his House counterpart Hakeem Jeffries, in their home state.
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