US Government Shutdown Enters Day Three!

　　The US government shutdown officially entered its third day this Friday. The US Senate is expected to vote again today on a temporary funding bill to extend federal government funds. If the bill fails to pass, the federal government shutdown may persist into next week.

　　Trump stated on social media that he would work with Russ Vought to determine "which parts of the Democrat apparatus will be defunded." It is worth mentioning that Trump and Vought have previously attempted to drastically reduce federal spending by threatening mass layoffs of staff and freezing funding for areas prioritized by Democrats.

　　Clearly, the White House and Republicans are once again trying to force Democrats to vote to reopen the government by threatening permanent cuts to federal agency staffing. Although some budget experts have pointed out that using funds during a shutdown to carry out permanent layoffs is illegal.

　　This hardline approach undoubtedly goes far beyond the scope of a conventional government shutdown—typically during a US government shutdown, most federal employees are merely placed on furlough and can receive back pay once government funding resumes.

　　House Speaker Mike Johnson also visited the White House to meet with Trump on Thursday. Johnson had previously defended Trump's aforementioned threats, stating that the president has the authority to fire employees and cut spending during a shutdown. Johnson also blamed Democrats for the interruption in funding.

　　The potential scale of the federal agency downsizing remains unclear, but Republican Senator Shelley Moore Capito from West Virginia predicted there could be significant cuts. "Does Russ Vought want to downsize the federal government substantially? Absolutely. He's been very clear about that," Capito said in an interview on Thursday.