'These people are sick': Trump admin slams top Dem for justifying shutdown suffering



House Democrats' second in command provided a jaw-dropping justification for the suffering inflicted on American families during the government shutdown, and the White House is having none of it.

As the government shutdown approaches its fourth week, Americans are bracing themselves to miss paychecks and key government benefits like SNAP. House Minority Whip Katherine Clark (D-Mass.) admitted that the Democrat-induced government shutdown has been painful for families across the country but justified it because "it is one of the few leverage times [Democrats] have."

'At some point, the Democrats are going to have to take yes for an answer.'

"I mean, shutdowns are terrible," Clark said in a recent interview. "Of course, there are going to be families that are going to suffer. We take that responsibility very seriously."

RELATED: Democrat senator blocks vote to end shutdown to protest Trump's 'authoritarianism' in drawn-out rant

Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

Democrats are holding federal paychecks hostage and using government benefits as leverage to accomplish a policy agenda Americans rejected at the ballot box last November. Rather than voting for the Republicans' clean, nonpartisan funding bill, which notably keeps spending levels at the same rate Democrats voted for over a dozen times in the past, Democrats are set on ramming through their own policies.

The White House quickly condemned Clark's comments, calling Democrats "sick" for using the American people as leverage.

"Not only are Democrats refusing to reopen the government and knowingly inflicting pain on the American people, but now they’re bragging about using struggling American families as leverage for their radical left agenda," White House deputy press secretary Abigail Jackson told Blaze News. "These people are sick.”

The Democrats' counter funding bill would cost taxpayers $1.5 trillion to effectively reverse every legislative accomplishment Republicans secured through President Donald Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Democrats are also demanding that Congress address Obamacare subsidies immediately despite the fact that they expire at the end of the year.

RELATED: Trump administration mocks outrage of 'unhinged leftists' as construction of ballroom begins at White House

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Although Democrats have remained stubborn, their efforts are ultimately futile. Republicans hold a supermajority, meaning Democrats will never have the support to pass legislation on their own during this Congress. Even though Democrats are trying to force the GOP's hand, top Republicans have maintained that they are not responsible for the shutdown and that it's up to their colleagues across the aisle to do the right thing and reopen the government.

"If the Democrats want to talk about subjects unrelated to ... getting the government open again, we’re happy to have those conversations," Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters Tuesday. "But we’ve repeatedly now gone through this, and at some point, the Democrats are going to have to take yes for an answer."

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Democrat senator blocks vote to end shutdown to protest Trump's 'authoritarianism' in drawn-out rant



Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley of Oregon is gunning for a record-breaking filibuster in hopes of blocking President Donald Trump's "attempts to trample on the Constitution."

Merkley began his filibuster Tuesday night in order to prevent Trump's "authoritarianism" in the form of a clean, nonpartisan continuing resolution that Democrats have blocked nearly a dozen times. As of early Wednesday afternoon, over 18 hours into his Senate floor spectacle, Merkley appears to be aiming to beat New Jersey Democrat Sen. Cory Booker's record-breaking 25-hour filibuster back in April.

Democrats' $1.5 trillion funding bill aims to undo every policy implemented by Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

Addressing an empty chamber, Merkley railed against Trump's efforts to address crime in Portland after an appeals court ruled in favor of the administration deploying the National Guard.

“Portlanders have responded in a very interesting way,” Merkley said. “They are demonstrating with joy and whimsy.”

RELATED: Trump administration mocks outrage of 'unhinged leftists' as construction of ballroom begins at White House

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The whimsical response from Portland residents included a horde of naked cyclists temporarily blocking an ICE facility's driveway to protest the crime crackdown. Several arrests were later made after some protesters became rowdy, refusing to move out of the driveway.

"They want to make it clear to the world that what Trump is saying about there being violent protests or a rebellion in Portland,” Merkley said, “it’s just not true.”

RELATED: Appeals court rules Trump can lawfully order National Guard troops to Portland

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Due to Merkley's drawn-out floor speech, the Senate has not been able to schedule another vote to reopen the government as the shutdown approaches its fourth week.

Democrats originally shut down the government after they blocked the Republican-led funding bill, allowing the September 30 deadline to lapse. Despite Democrat posturing, the GOP's bill remains a clean continuing resolution with no partisan anomalies.

In contrast, the Democrats' $1.5 trillion funding bill aims to undo every policy implemented by Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Democrats are also insisting on addressing Obamacare subsidies even though they expire at the end of the year.

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‘Not Good’: National Guard Training Grinds To Halt Amid Shutdown — With No Pay In Sight

As the government shutdown enters its fourth week, National Guard units across the country are canceling drill weekends, suspending routine training, and operating without pay for many personnel, according to state National Guard officials across the country.  In several states, only units preparing for mobilization or conducting mission-critical activities are continuing training, Guard officials told […]

Democrat Won’t Say Whether He Will Forgo Pay During Shutdown While Staff Works Unpaid

Senate staffers missed their first paychecks due to the government shutdown on Monday, but at least one Democratic lawmaker who has repeatedly voted against reopening the government will not say whether he still plans to receive his salary. Democratic Arizona Sen. Ruben Gallego told the Daily Caller News Foundation on Monday that he is “still […]

Congressional Democrats 'Terrified of Getting the Guillotine' From Left-Wing Base If They Vote To End Shutdown: Report

Democrats are afraid of ending the federal government shutdown because they are "terrified of getting the guillotine" from their left-wing base, according to a report.

The post Congressional Democrats 'Terrified of Getting the Guillotine' From Left-Wing Base If They Vote To End Shutdown: Report appeared first on .

Trump administration halts funds for projects in blue cities as Democrats refuse to reopen the government



President Donald Trump's administration is ramping up the pressure on Democrats who refuse to reopen the government over two weeks into the shutdown.

Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought announced Friday that he will be pausing over $11 billion of project funding across several blue cities. This pause will halt funds for "lower-priority" projects overseen by the Army Corps of Engineers in New York City, San Francisco, Boston, and Baltimore.

'We're only going to cut Democrat programs, I hate to tell you.'

This pause comes more than two weeks into the Democrat-induced government shutdown after nearly a dozen failed votes on the Senate floor.

"The Democrat shutdown has drained the Army Corps of Engineers' ability to manage billions of dollars in projects," Vought wrote in a post on X. "The Corps will be immediately pausing over $11 billion in lower-priority projects & considering them for cancellation, including projects in New York, San Francisco, Boston, and Baltimore. More information to come from the Army Corps of Engineers."

RELATED: White House deploys nuclear option amid Democrat-induced shutdown stalemate

Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

This pressure is the latest of several actions taken by the Trump administration since the government shut down on October 1. Ahead of the shutdown, Vought notified agencies to begin drafting reduction-in-force notices that later resulted in over 4,200 layoffs across various prominent agencies.

A Clinton-appointed judge in California has since halted those RIFs.

Vought also previously paused billions of dollars' worth of infrastructure and environmental projects in other blue cities like Chicago and New York City.

At the same time, the Trump administration is working to minimize shutdown pains for the military, working through Department of War Secretary Pete Hegseth to ensure that service members received their October 15 paycheck.

RELATED: White House dares Democrats with nuclear response to looming shutdown

Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Image

Trump previously warned Democrats that his administration would take these actions if they did not join Republicans to reopen the government. Assuming all 53 Republicans vote in favor of the funding resolution, at least seven Democrats need to join the GOP to reopen the government.

"We're only going to cut Democrat programs, I hate to tell you," Trump said during a Cabinet meeting last week.

"Chuck Schumer proclaimed this morning that every day gets better for them," Trump added. "No, every day it's actually getting worse for them, and they're having a rebellion in the Democrat Party because they want to stop."

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Democrats Making Serious Miscalculation That Could Hand GOP Senate Seat

'makes him a resilient incumbent if he survives'

Mass Chaos: Dem Rep Mounts Challenge to 79-Year-Old Progressive Senator

Democratic Massachusetts congressman Seth Moulton, who has bucked his party's stances on transgender issues, will challenge Sen. Ed Markey for his Senate seat in 2026, pitting the 46-year-old Marine veteran against one of the Democratic Party's oldest progressives.

The post Mass Chaos: Dem Rep Mounts Challenge to 79-Year-Old Progressive Senator appeared first on .

'This is insane': Tom Emmer eviscerates Democrats for refusing to reopen the government



As the government officially enters the second week of the shutdown, House Majority Whip Tom Emmer of Minnesota has a clear message to Democrats.

In a video obtained exclusively by Blaze News, Emmer ripped into Senate Democrats for putting partisan politics over the American people. Ever since Democrats refused to pass the Republicans' clean, nonpartisan funding bill before the September 30 deadline, Congress has been in a stalemate.

'All these Democrats are putting their political issue ahead of the American people.'

"The Democrats in the U.S. Senate have now voted 'no' on reopening the government seven times," Emmer says in the video obtained by Blaze News. "... You've got over 400,000 Minnesotans who rely on SNAP to support themselves. Our air traffic controllers aren't going to get paid. Our Customs and Border Patrol [sic] isn't going to get paid."

Notably, President Donald Trump's administration has made attempts to minimize pain for those affected by the shutdown, such as making sure our military service members don't miss their paychecks on October 15.

RELATED: Democrats feign outrage as Trump administration shutdown layoffs hit: 'They seem to be enjoying it'

In the video, Emmer is seen standing in the United States Capitol near the Senate chamber, where over a half-dozen votes to reopen the government have been blocked by Democrats. Emmer also points out the harsh contrast between the two spending bills proposed by the respective parties.

"I'm standing in the rotunda. Behind me is where the Senate should be right now, voting to reopen the government," Emmer says in the video. "Instead, seven times now they have voted no."

The Republican-led spending bill is a bipartisan bill that continues funding the government at current spending levels through November 21. There are no ideological line items or anomalies in the GOP bill, whereas the Democrat bill is full of them. Emmer calls out Democrat Sen. Tina Smith, who shares his Minnesota constituency, for voting against every effort to keep the government open.

"You want to put illegals back on taxpayer-funded health care benefits while at the same time gutting our rural hospital fund of $50 billion that we created just this summer," Emmer says of Smith.

RELATED: 'PAY OUR TROOPS': Trump unveils creative solution to minimize military's shutdown pain

Daniel Heuer/Bloomberg via Getty Images

"All these Democrats are putting their political issue ahead of the American people," Emmer continues in the video. "This is insane, and it's wrong."

"Our message is clear. Democrats: Reopen the government. Let's get back to work. Put the people before your politics. Stop hurting Americans. Let's get back to work and finish the job that we were all sent here to do."

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Democrats feign outrage as Trump administration shutdown layoffs hit: 'They seem to be enjoying it'



With no end in sight to the government shutdown, President Donald Trump's administration is putting Democrats in an unenviable position.

Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought announced Friday that the administration has officially begun issuing reduction in force notices, laying off over 4,200 government workers across several key departments, like Treasury, Health and Human Services, and Homeland Security. As the government approaches its third week of the shutdown, Democrats are left weighing their options.

'The easiest way to stop this is for five [Democrats] to come to their senses.'

These layoffs come as no surprise. Vought previously threatened Democrats with mass layoffs just days before the September 30 funding deadline. Still, Democrats are feigning surprise.

"Here's what's worse: Republicans would rather see thousands of Americans lose their jobs than sit down and negotiate with Democrats to reopen the government," Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement. "The way forward is simple: Stop the attacks, come to the table, negotiate, and reopen the government. Until Republicans get serious, they own this — every job lost, every family hurt, every service gutted is because of their decisions.”

RELATED: 'PAY OUR TROOPS': Trump unveils creative solution to minimize military's shutdown pain

Photo by Anna Rose Layden/Getty Images

Democrats blocked the Republican-led funding bill that would have kept the government open and operating at virtually the same funding levels.The GOP's bill was a simple, clean, 90-page continuing resolution with no partisan anomalies, save a bipartisan line item that would boost security funds for lawmakers following Charlie Kirk's assassination.

Rather than voting alongside Republicans to keep the government open, Democrats decided to introduce their own $1.5 trillion spending bill that would reverse major legislative accomplishments achieved in Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill. Democrats also insisted on immediately renegotiating healthcare subsidies from the Affordable Care Act, though these aren't set to expire until the end of the year.

Democrats are in the minority in both the House and the Senate.

RELATED: White House deploys nuclear option amid Democrat-induced shutdown stalemate

Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images

Senate Democrats have stubbornly voted no over a half dozen times on reopening the government. One senior Democratic aide told CNN that the party will not concede short of "planes falling out of the sky."

"The pressure thus far hasn't moved them at all," Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-La.) told Blaze News during a press call hosted by the Republican Study Committee. "They seem to be enjoying it."

"I don't think anybody in the White House takes any pleasure in this at all," Johnson told Blaze News. "I've spoken to the president about this myself. Of course, I've spoken to Russell Vought as well. They're in an unenviable position."

"The easiest way to stop this is for five [Democrats] to come to their senses in the Senate and join Republicans to reopen the government."

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