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Since 1980, there have been 14 shutdowns in the US. The longest occurred under Trump in 2018–19, lasting 35 days and sidelining around 800,000 workers.
US President Donald Trump warned that his administration might impose significant cuts on the federal workforce and “irreversible” changes if there is a shutdown, dangling the threat of job loss for government employees and other. (Image Credit: Reuters)
US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said the government shutdown was “probably likely”, while blaming the Democrats for the looming funding lapse.
“Nothing is inevitable, but I would say it’s probably likely,” Trump said from the Oval Office, adding, “I didn’t see them bend even a little bit.”
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This came a day after a White House meeting with Democratic congressional leaders ended at an impasse over Democrats’ demands for healthcare concessions, CNN reported.
On Tuesday, Trump accused the Democrats, without evidence, of seeking to “give healthcare to illegal immigrants”.
CNN quoted him as warning that his administration might impose significant cuts on the federal workforce and “irreversible” changes if there is a shutdown, dangling the threat of job loss for government employees and others.
“We can do things during the shutdown that are irreversible, that are bad for them and irreversible by them, like cutting vast numbers of people out, cutting things that they like, cutting programmes that they like,” he said.
Last week, Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought had issued a memo directing federal agencies to prepare plans for mass firings should the government shut down.
The shutdown will likely leave hundreds of thousands of federal employees without pay, disrupt services from food safety inspections to air travel, and risk damaging the world’s largest economy.
The Defence Department has already warned that active-duty and reserve military members will have to keep reporting for work without pay. Judiciary officials have said federal courts could be disrupted within days.
According to CNN, since 1980, there have been 14 shutdowns. The longest occurred under Trump in 2018–19, lasting 35 days and sidelining around 800,000 workers.
In most shutdowns, federal employees are placed on temporary leave without pay, known as furloughs, until funding is restored. This time, however, the Trump administration has signalled a more drastic approach.
Past shutdowns have shown ripple effects: even a handful of air traffic controllers calling in sick in 2019 caused flight chaos at New York’s LaGuardia and other airports. National parks and Smithsonian museums may close, while states like Utah and Arizona sometimes step in with their own funds, CNN noted.
Washington D.C., United States of America (USA)
October 01, 2025, 00:08 IST
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