Amid the ongoing government shutdown, President Donald Trump gave Fox News a tour of recent White House renovations and discussed the economy, claiming that “prices are down.”
Despite President Donald Trump says Democrats are “not getting much” in the government funding deal the House is set to vote on Wednesday, it does include a provision that would reverse the firings of thousands federal workers that he carried out during the shutdown.
Nevertheless, Trump has said he’ll “abide” by the deal the Senate passed. “Well, the country loses a lot of money when they do this, and they’re not getting much, but nobody gets a lot, but it’s terrible,” Trump said during an interview.
To put pressure on Democrats, who support federal workers, the White House had threatened the mass firings would be implemented as part of a shutdown. Then, on Oct. 2, just two days into the shutdown, Trump posted on his social media platform that it was “unprecedented opportunity” to make even more cuts to the government.
Trump even referred to Office and Management and Budget Director Russ Vought as the “Grim Reaper,” posting an AI-generated video showing the top bureaucrat in a reaper’s outfit and wielding a scythe.
“Russ Vought is the Reaper. He wields the pen, the funds, and the brain. Here comes the Reaper,” the voice in the AI-generated video sings as Vought walks through the city amid rows of workers.
On Oct. 10, Vought announced mass firings of federal workers, many of whom were furloughed at that point, were underway.
More than 4,000 federal workers lost their jobs at agencies across the government, including the Departments of Commerce, Education, Energy, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, Homeland Security and Treasury.
However, included in the measure that would reopen the government, is language that would reverse firings that have happened since the shutdown began and prevent any more layoffs until at least the end of January.
“I think the White House was involved in all of the discussions around that subject,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune said on Monday when asked by ABC News whether the president had agreed to that provision.
