President Donald Trump is weighing slashing "thousands" of federal jobs ahead of a meeting with his budget director, Russell Vought, as the White House looks to ratchet up pressure on Democrats to end a government shutdown that has entered its second day. "It's likely going to be in the thousands," White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Thursday, saying that the "entire team at the White House" was working to identify possible cuts.
The effects of a government shutdown are rippling across the country. Yesterday, federal workers stayed home from work, national parks prepared to close down and people seeking services from the federal government met a patchwork of availability and access. In Washington, White House officials and Congressional leaders spent the day pointing blame in public while a small group of lawmakers in the Senate began talks about a potential offramp.