Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought said the Trump administration will begin firing federal workers in a "day or two," sources told Axios.
Why it matters: It's the first day of a government shutdown, and the White House and GOP leaders are moving to maximize pressure on Democrats — aiming to make the fallout as painful as possible for them.
- Vought made the comments on a House Republican conference-wide call Wednesday afternoon.
- He offered no specifics on which agencies would be targeted, according to two people on the call.
- The remarks coincided with Senate's third failed attempt to pass the GOP's stopgap funding plan.
Catch up quick: Vought issued a memo last week that threatened mass layoffs if a shutdown was triggered.
- In the memo, Vought instructed agencies to send "Reduction in Force (RIF) notices for all employees" in programs that are "not consistent with the president's priorities."
- The OMB director also announced Wednesday that $18 billion in federal funds for New York City's infrastructure projects will be frozen, and $8 billion in "Green New Scam funding" will be frozen in a dozen blue states.
The bottom line: Vought told House Republicans that he'll spend the next week figuring out "constitutionally" what the administration can do in terms of shrinking the federal work force, according to a source on the call.
• He also said the layoffs will be "consequential."
