Democratic leaders affirmed they would not be coerced by the White House’s warning to implement another wave of widespread dismissals if federal funding lapses next week, indicating their firm resolve in ongoing discussions with Republicans ahead of the imminent deadline to extend government financing.

“This is a tactic of intimidation. Donald Trump has been terminating federal employees since his first day—not to govern, but to instill fear,” stated Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, reacting to a memorandum from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) that directed agencies to prepare for substantial firings in the event of a shutdown. Schumer added that the White House budget office’s action had “no relevance to funding the government” and suggested that the potential layoffs would “either be overturned by the judiciary or the administration will ultimately rehire the workers, just as they did earlier this week.”

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries expressed a similar viewpoint, declaring that Democrats “will not be intimidated by your threat to engage in mass firings” and characterizing Russell Vought, the head of the OMB, as “a malicious political operative.”

“Go away,” he posted on X.

As the September 30th deadline for Democrats and Republicans to finalize a funding agreement and prevent a government shutdown approaches, the OMB, in its Wednesday night memo, advised federal agencies to consider cutting staff engaged in programs whose funding would cease next week, lack other available funding sources, or are deemed “not in line with the President’s priorities.”

“Programs that did not benefit from a boost of mandatory appropriations will bear the primary impact of a shutdown, and we must persist with our planning efforts should Democrats choose to halt government operations,” the memo conveyed, which was initially reported by Politico.

The memo’s directive for agencies to commence planning for permanent job eliminations for federal employees differs from the furloughs of past government shutdowns, after which affected staff members typically returned to their positions once Congress agreed on measures to reinstate funding.

Democrats have rejected a GOP provisional bill to extend government funding through November 21st, which passed the House, and have declined to back any funding extension unless it reverses billions in Medicaid cuts implemented by the “,” among other provisions. Senate Republicans, conversely, have dismissed the Democrats’ proposal.

Trump was scheduled to meet with senior Democrats this week with the intention of averting a shutdown, but he announced his cancellation in a social media post, claiming Democrats’ demands precluded any productive discussion.

“After reviewing the specifics of the unserious and ludicrous demands being made by the Minority Radical Left Democrats in exchange for their Votes to keep our flourishing Nation open, I have concluded that no meeting with their Congressional Leaders could possibly be productive,” Trump posted on Truth Social.

Amidst the apparent impasse in negotiations, both factions are striving to lay blame for a potential shutdown at the feet of their adversaries.

“This entire situation is caused by the Democrats,” Trump informed reporters in the Oval Office on Thursday. “They requested something utterly unreasonable. They never compromise.”

Earlier in the day, Rep. Katherine Clark, the Democratic whip in the House, attributed responsibility to Trump during a CNN interview. “We have a president who claims he enjoys making deals, yet he will never advocate for the American people,” she remarked.

“When he is shutting the door on us, he is shutting the door on them,” Clark observed. “And we are here to assert that these reductions to healthcare are unsustainable for American families who are already struggling to provide for their basic needs for their family … We have demonstrated how perilous these cuts are, the harm they will inflict upon families, upon our entire economy. And so let us come and engage in that negotiation.”

Further layoffs would compound the federal employment reduction of 97,000 already documented this year as the Trump Administration has sought to drastically reduce the federal budget and workforce.

“Federal employees are not leverage. They are veterans, caregivers, law enforcement officers, and community members who serve their country and fellow Americans every day,” said American Federation of Government Employees National President Everett Kelley on Thursday. “They deserve stability and respect, not termination notices and political maneuvering.”