Agencies Washington

The White House has told its agencies to prepare for mass firings if Congress does not avert a government shutdown next week, according to a memo obtained by US media. In the memo, the Office of Budget and Management directs federal agencies to begin drafting “reduction in force” plans for programmes whose funding will lapse if Congress fails to meet a Sep­tember 30 budget deadline.

The warning came after Trump on Tuesday refused a meeting with Democrats seeking to secure healthcare funding as part of budget negotiations. “We remain hopeful that Democrats in Congress will not trigger a shutdown and the steps outlined above will not be necessary,” the memo states.

The budget office memo warns of permanent firings specifically for federal programmes, projects and activities that have no alternative funding sources and are “not consistent with the president's priorities”.

Many federal government agencies rely on annual funding approved by Congress. Every year, these agencies submit their requests, which Congress must pass, and the president must sign budget legislation for the next fiscal year. A shutdown takes place if an agreement is not reached by the start of the fiscal year on October 1, meaning all non-essential discretionary functions stop.

Last week, Republicans in the House of Representatives, along with a Democrat, pass­ed a short-term measure to keep the government funded until November 20, but Senate Democrats block­ed the bill.

After news of the draft firings memo, Democrats accused the White House of using intimidation tactics. “Donald Trump has been firing federal workers since day one — not to govern, but to scare,” said Schumer, the De­m­ocratic Senate minority lea­der. Since taking office, Trump has already fired thousands of federal workers through his cost-cutting initiative with the Department of Government Efficiency (Doge).