The White House has said it could begin laying off federal workers if talks with congressional Democrats to end the partial government shutdown make no progress. Kevin Hassett, Director of the White House National Economic Council, told CNN’s State of the Union that President Donald Trump and Budget Director Russell Vought were preparing for possible layoffs but still hoped to avoid them. “President Trump and Russ Vought are lining things up and getting ready to act if they have to, but hoping that they don’t,” Hassett said, according to Reuters. “If the president decides that the negotiations are absolutely going nowhere, then there will start to be layoffs. But everybody is still hopeful that when we get a fresh start at the beginning of the week, we can get the Democrats to see that it’s just common sense to avoid layoffs like that.” The shutdown began on October 1, marking the start of the 2026 fiscal year, after Senate Democrats rejected a short-term funding bill that would have kept government agencies open until November 21. Democrats are pushing for a permanent extension of enhanced premium tax credits to help Americans afford private health insurance under the Affordable Care Act. They are also seeking written guarantees that the White House will not attempt to cancel agreed spending from any funding deal. However, there has been little sign of progress since President Trump last met congressional leaders. House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries criticised the president’s approach, telling NBC’s Meet the Press, “What we’ve seen is negotiation through deep fake videos, the House cancelling votes and, of course, President Trump spending yesterday on the golf course. That’s not responsible behaviour.”
