Democrats Hit Back After White House Mass Layoffs Threat

Democratic leaders said they would not be intimidated by the White House’s threat to carry out another round of mass layoffs if the government shuts down next week, signaling they will stand firm in their negotiations with Republicans ahead of the looming deadline to extend federal funding.

“This is an attempt at intimidation. Donald Trump has been firing federal workers since day one—not to govern, but to scare,” said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer in response to a memo from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) instructing agencies to plan for large-scale firings in the case of a shutdown. Schumer added that the move by the White House budget office had “nothing to do with funding the government” and said the potential layoffs would “either be overturned in court or the