Dem defections could torpedo ‘Schumer shutdown’ amid jitters over gov’t layoffs

Not all Democrats may be willing to go along with the plan to shut down the federal government, a course that party leadership is locked into as a misguided way to stick it to President Donald J. Trump.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) is fully in sync with the party’s extremist base, which is demanding that congressional Democrats burn it all down instead of governing, a risky move driven by the belief that the American people will blame an interruption in services on the president.

With the “Schumer shutdown” only days away, Trump is refusing to cave to Democrat extortion, and the White House is preparing for mass federal layoffs if Senate Democrats don’t agree to the “clean” seven-week stopgap funding bill that was passed by the House of Representatives.

In a Thursday memo to federal agencies, the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) instructed them to prepare plans for a mass reduction-in-force (RIF) if Democrats go through with their shutdown scheme, serving up a golden opportunity for the Trump administration to trim the fat from the bloated bureaucracy on a silver platter.

Checkmate @SenSchumer

White House to agencies: Prepare mass firing plans for a potential shutdown
In memo, the Trump administration says the Reduction-in-Force plans would go beyond standard shutdown furloughs.https://t.co/vocjXp39gd

— Sean Spicer (@seanspicer) September 25, 2025

“Programs that did not benefit from an infusion of mandatory appropriations will bear the brunt of a shutdown, and we must continue our planning efforts in the event Democrats decide to shut down the government,” read the memo, which was first reported by Politico.

The threat of the mass firings has gotten the attention of some squeamish members of the Senate Democrat caucus who may be reluctant to go along with Schumer’s suicide mission and are reportedly quietly reaching out to their Republican colleagues, with the possibility that enough lawmakers will break ranks to avert a catastrophe.

According to a report from The Hill, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), has been “putting out feelers” to GOP colleagues about reaching a deal or “mutual understanding” to avoid a shutdown.

In an interview with Semafor last week, the retiring lawmaker said she sees “a number of ways” to avoid going through with the shutdown “that should satisfy both sides,” even though it would depend on a sufficient number of her fellow Democrats also being willing to defy Schumer and the fanatical leftists who are now firmly in control of the party.

“I’m not going to draw a line in the sand and say it’s got to be this way or that way,” Shaheen said.

The Hill cites unnamed “Democratic sources familiar with internal caucus discussions” who say that there are a “handful” of Dem senators who want to avoid shutting down the federal government, “even though they have little room to maneuver given the hard line drawn by Schumer and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries (N.Y.) against the House-passed continuing resolution.”

According to the outlet, an unnamed Senate Republican aide confirmed that bipartisan talks that circumvent Democrat leadership to “find a way” to pass a clean stopgap funding bill before Tuesday night, the deadline to pull back from going over the cliff with Schumer.

“There is a small handful of intelligent Democrats who don’t want to see the government shut down [and] are working behind the scenes,” the source told The Hill. “I know Democrats have spoken with Republicans.”

The anonymous aide emphasized that Republican leadership “is not prepared to give away any significant concessions at this point.”

One Democrat who has been vocal about the folly of shutting down the government has been Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.), an old-school liberal of the type that has been banished from the party.

“If Democrats truly believe we’re on a rocket sled to autocracy, why would we hand a shuttered government over to Trump and Vought’s woodchipper at the OMB?” Fetterman asked in a statement to The Hill, referring to Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought.

“I’m unwilling to vote for mass chaos and run that risk,” he said. At least eight Democrats would have to break ranks to prevent the “Schumer shutdown,” which will go into effect on Wednesday if a deal isn’t struck.

Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) are maintaining their hard line and, over the last several days, have been constantly in front of the cameras to gaslight Americans that the shutdown is all on Trump.

“Listen Russ, you are a malignant political hack,” Jeffries wrote in a recent post to X. “We will not be intimidated by your threat to engage in mass firings. Get lost.”

Listen Russ, you are a malignant political hack.

We will not be intimidated by your threat to engage in mass firings.

Get lost. pic.twitter.com/bzJxav74Bh

— Hakeem Jeffries (@RepJeffries) September 25, 2025

“This is all caused by the Democrats. They asked us to do something unreasonable,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Thursday. “This is what Schumer wants. This is what Democrats want.”

Staff Writer

Chris Donaldson is an ordinary American who is concerned about rampant corruption as well as the ongoing attacks on our way of life by those who have contempt for our hard-earned freedoms. A Navy veteran, he has been a frequent contributor to conservative websites and resides in Florida.

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