WASHINGTON — As the federal government shutdown enters its second day, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) is doubling down on the chaos, calling the Trump administration’s threat of mass layoffs for federal workers “fantastic” and predicting a Democrat meltdown when pink slips start flying at agencies like the EPA and IRS.
The Texas Republican’s gleeful take, shared on Fox Business amid furloughs affecting up to 800,000 employees, underscores the high-stakes gamble Republicans are making: Use the impasse to slash what they see as bloated bureaucracy, even if it means real pain for working families.
The shutdown kicked in just after midnight Tuesday, October 1, 2025, after Congress failed to pass a funding bill by the deadline.
It’s the first since 2019, triggered by GOP demands for $175 billion in non-defense spending cuts tied to border security.
But Trump and his team aren’t treating it like a temporary hiccup.
Instead, they’re wielding it as a wrecking ball, with Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought directing agencies to prep for permanent firings rather than routine furloughs.
Government Shutdown or GOP Takeover?
In a partial shutdown, workers typically get back pay once the lights come on again—but Vought’s plan flips that script, aiming to boot “left-wing bureaucrats” enforcing what Trump calls a “job-killing agenda.”
Cruz, a vocal shutdown veteran from his 2013 filibuster fame, lit up on Fox Business Wednesday, crediting Vought’s strategy.
“I think that is fantastic,” Cruz said, barely containing a grin. He painted a vivid scene of the fallout: “I cannot wait for the next Democrat lunch when they start screaming at each other when they start seeing pink slips go out at the EPA, at the Department of Labor, at the IRS and suddenly the bureaucrats that they are entrusting to advance their job killing agenda are themselves without a job.”
It’s classic Cruz—part prophecy, part provocation—aimed at firing up the base while needling opponents.
Trump himself fanned the flames Thursday, posting on Truth Social about a powwow with Vought, the brains behind Project 2025’s blueprint for gutting the federal workforce.
“I have a meeting today with Russ Vought, he of PROJECT 2025 Fame, to determine which of the many Democrat Agencies, most of which are a political SCAM, he recommends to be cut, and whether or not those cuts will be temporary or permanent,” Trump wrote.
He couldn’t resist a jab at Democrats of course, stating, “I cannot believe Democrats have given me this unprecedented opportunity.”
Trump Wipes Billions in Funding for Blue States
The moves are already biting. Vought’s office announced the cancellation of nearly $8 billion in clean energy projects across 16 blue states—California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington—yanking funds from solar incentives and wind farms that could idle thousands of jobs.
Earlier Thursday, the OMB froze $18 billion for New York’s subway upgrades and Hudson Tunnel project, slamming Democratic strongholds in the backyard of Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.
Democrats are pissed, blasting the tactics as illegal extortion that’s “hurting hard-working Americans, killing jobs, and harming the economy.”
Schumer thundered on the Senate floor: “This is a Trump shutdown,” vowing to fight the “retaliatory cuts” with a clean funding bill loaded with healthcare protections up for a Friday vote. Jeffries echoed that in a joint statement: “After months of making life harder and more expensive, Donald Trump and Republicans have now shut down the federal government because they do not want to protect the healthcare of the American people.”
Even some Republicans are pumping the brakes.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, navigating a slim majority, shrugged off the backlash but admitted the pain, stating, “The White House, the executive branch take no pleasure in this.” He defended the approach as election results in action, stating, “When they are tasked with determining what the priorities are, obviously they are going to follow their principles and priorities and not the other team. That’s the results of an election that everybody voted in.”
The human cost is mounting fast.
Furloughs have sidelined air traffic controllers, park rangers, and passport processors, with economists warning a prolonged standoff could shave 0.5% off GDP.
For federal families, it’s not abstract—it’s skipped paychecks and holiday stress. Cruz’s “fantastic” quip, meant to rally conservatives hungry for smaller government, has instead amplified the divide, turning a budget fight into a raw nerve on working-class pain.
As Friday’s vote looms—with a Democratic bill facing certain defeat and a GOP stopgap extending the drama—the shutdown feels less like negotiation and more like demolition.
Trump bet big on his MAGA mandate; Cruz is cheering from the cheap seats. But for the 800,000 on the chopping block, fantastic is the last word they’d use.
The layoffs only become a detriment to the U.S. economy.
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