President Donald Trump ’s administration’s threat not to back pay federal government employees during the shutdown could backfire, given that it will also affect Trump appointees.

In a memo to White House Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought, OMB General Counsel Mark Paoletta found that the federal government is under no obligation to retroactively pay furloughed federal employees under federal law.

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In the memo, Paoletta argued that the federal government can only legally issue back pay to furloughed workers if the funds are s

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