As the federal government shutdown entered its second day, President Donald Trump’s administration announced Wednesday that it is freezing $26 billion earmarked for Democratic-leaning states, escalating partisan tensions and deepening the standoff on Capitol Hill.
The freeze targets $18 billion in transit projects for New York, home to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, and another $8 billion in green-energy initiatives across 16 Democratic-run states, including California and Illinois.
Administration officials described the move as an effort to cut wasteful spending. “Billions of dollars can be saved,” Trump posted on Truth Social. But Democrats called it an act of political retaliation. “He is using the American people as pawns, threatening pain on the country as blackmail,” Schumer said.
House leader Jeffries warned that the halt in New York’s transit and harbor projects could put thousands of workers out of jobs. Some Republicans also expressed unease, with Senator Thom Tillis cautioning that such targeted freezes could make it harder to reach a bipartisan deal.
The shutdown, the nation’s 15th since 1981, has already sidelined 750,000 federal workers, leaving many without pay while troops and border agents continue to work without compensation. Essential services remain disrupted: scientific research has paused, environmental cleanup projects are on hold, and the Department of Veterans Affairs said it can still provide burials at national cemeteries, but not mow grass or install headstones.
Vice President JD Vance signaled the administration could go further, saying layoffs might follow if the shutdown lasts beyond a few days. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has already informed its staff that it will reduce its workforce by 1%.
On Wednesday, the Senate once again failed to pass competing measures to reopen the government. Republicans offered a stopgap bill funding agencies through Nov. 21, while Democrats tied their proposal to expanded health benefits. Neither cleared the 60-vote threshold.
Source: Reuters