Speaker of the House Mike Johnson on Thursday blamed Democrats for the pain of the ongoing government shutdown, now in its second day.
Johnson argued Senate Democrats caused the crisis by refusing to support a seven-week stopgap funding bill, forcing agencies to delay payments and reduce operations.
President Trump, meanwhile, announced he was meeting with Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought—“he of PROJECT 2025 Fame”—to decide which federal programs should face cuts. Trump said Democrats had given him “an unprecedented opportunity” to reshape spending. Vought has already frozen billions for New York subway projects and is leading shutdown protocols. Johnson said Vought is performing a difficult but necessary role, and insisted Democrats could end the shutdown immediately.
