Washington, D.C. — President Donald Trump said he will meet Thursday with Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought to determine which “Democrat agencies” to cut as the federal shutdown heads toward a third day, signaling no concessions to Democrats’ demand that any stopgap funding bill include health-insurance subsidies.
On Capitol Hill, Republicans and Democrats traded blame while hundreds of thousands of federal employees stayed home without pay and many public services slowed or closed. Some attractions shuttered — including several federal museums in Washington and New York — while others, notably the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, remained open.
Vought, who oversees shutdown operations, said the White House has moved to pause or cancel billions in funding slated for Democratic-led states, including $18 billion in New York infrastructure projects. OMB determines which activities halt and which are deemed “essential,” guiding agencies on who is furloughed.
The Senate plans another vote Friday on a short-term funding bill. Republicans want a “clean” extension, while Democrats insist on renewing expiring subsidies for low-income health coverage. GOP leaders say they will force repeat votes until enough Democrats cross over. The last attempt drew only three Democratic votes; Democrats would need 13 Republican defections to pass their version.
House Speaker Mike Johnson called it a “Democrat shutdown” and ruled out negotiations over subsidies or other add-ons. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries accused Republicans of blocking aid for working-class Americans and dismissed Trump’s threats of further firings: “They have been firing federal employees all along.”
Public opinion appears split along partisan lines. Lee Miringoff of the Marist Institute for Public Opinion said most partisans blame the other side, while 41% of independents fault both equally. He predicted pressure on Congress will rise only when more Americans feel the direct effects.
The Congressional Budget Office estimates about 750,000 federal workers are furloughed. “Essential” personnel — including more than 200,000 law-enforcement officers, Transportation Security Administration screeners, and air-traffic controllers — continue working without pay, a dynamic that produced sick-outs and airport delays during the 2018–19 shutdown.
In New York, Federal Hall closed to visitors; the Smithsonian said it can remain open roughly a week on carryover funds. A Department of the Interior spokesperson said the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island are open “thanks to the leadership of President Donald J. Trump.”
Both parties insist the other must yield. Until then, the government’s partial paralysis from paychecks to public spaces is set to deepen, even as many Americans have yet to feel the shutdown’s full bite.
