President Donald Trump said on Sept. 30 that “a lot” of federal workers could lose their jobs if Democrats and Republicans fail to reach a deal on a stopgap funding bill, setting the stage for the government’s first shutdown in nearly seven years.
Speaking to reporters before leaving the White House for a meeting with military leaders in Virginia, Trump was asked how many federal workers he expected to lay off if a shutdown begins.
“Well, we may do a lot,” he replied, faulting Democrats for insisting on attaching health care provisions to the temporary spending measure.
Republicans are pushing for a clean bill to extend federal funding for seven weeks while lawmakers finish work on annual appropriations….