Trump’s budget director, Russell Vought, has been waiting for this moment.
Trump’s Budget Chief Moves Quickly in Shutdown
The Wall Street Journal Reports Trump’s Budget Chief, Slayer of Big Government, Moves Quickly in Shutdown
Vought, director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, was quick Wednesday to target Democratic priorities and projects. In a move that affected Democratic congressional leaders from New York, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Vought posted on X that a hold had been put on $18 billion in federal funds for New York City infrastructure work: a Hudson River tunnel project and a subway extension.
The Transportation Department pinned the blame on the shutdown, saying a review of the projects’ contracting policies and their relationship to diversity, equity and inclusion requirements couldn’t move forward. “Without a budget, the department has been forced to furlough the civil rights staff responsible for conducting this review,” the agency said in a statement.
Vought also posted that $8 billion in Energy Department funds for climate projects would be canceled in more than a dozen Democratic-leaning states. He didn’t specify which projects would be affected.
Last week, Vought issued a memo directing federal agencies to craft plans for widespread layoffs in the event of a shutdown. He told House Republicans on a conference call Wednesday that layoffs likely would begin in another day or two, according to people on the call. While he didn’t specify how many layoffs were in the pipeline, one person familiar with the call said Vought indicated it would be consequential.
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R., S.C.), a close Trump ally, predicted a shutdown might not last long, in part because of the specter of Vought. “This OMB guy, you need to watch him,” Graham said. “I think there’s definitely a downside to a shutdown for the system…I think he will try to wreak havoc on the workforce.”
Vought “has been thinking for his entire life and career about how to downsize the government,” House Speaker Mike Johnson (R., La.) told The Wall Street Journal, adding that “he’s acting very judiciously.”
The extent to which Vought plans to follow through on his threat remains to be seen. Sen. Kevin Cramer (R., N.D.) said he thought it was more a negotiating tactic, but “no one should doubt Director Vought’s willingness to carry out the threat. I know I don’t.”
Rep. Sean Casten (D., Ill.) said Vought was “threatening to fire federal employees for political reasons and without concern for the impact on the government.”
Vought is “very dedicated to the idea of shrinking the government, getting rid of federal employees, and he’s really clever in finding a way to do that in any situation,” said David Graham, author of “The Project: How Project 2025 Is Reshaping America.”
Vought has argued that Congress doesn’t have full control of the purse when it comes to federal spending, despite a 1974 law that limits the White House’s ability to rescind money appropriated by Congress. In January, he told the Senate Budget Committee that he thinks the 1974 law, called the Impoundment Control Act, was unconstitutional.
Sen. Susan Collins (R., Maine), who chairs the Senate Appropriations Committee, denounced the White House move as an apparent attempt to bypass Congress and “a clear violation of the law.”
“You have an appropriations process where the president can just turn around and say, I’ll just do what I want to do,” said Sharon Block, a professor at Harvard Law School who served at OMB in the Biden administration. That process, she said, “sits at Russ Vought’s door.”
Tremendous Irony in This Setup
I side with Susan Collins. Much of this is a clear violation of the law and the Constitution.
If the Court upholds this, just wait until Democrats get their turn at things, especially related to DEI, the environment, and military spending.
The forward risks are greater than any short-term gain.
That’s the big fear in this Trumpian shell game of pretending to do something about the deficit.
Trump Expands Government Meddling
Also note the irony of Vought trying to reduce government while Trump has gone overboard the other direction.
Thanks to Trump, the government has a stake in Intel, NVDIA, and US Steel. He is telling corporations and universities how to run their businesses.
Republicans were once a champion of free speech. Not anymore. And Trump is targeting political opponents out of revenge after pledging the process would stop.
Trump has profited personally in crypto schemes that amount to influence peddling to the highest bidder.
And finally, Trump is promoting TrumpRX, a government sponsored discount drug exchange. That’s with Pfizer, infamously related to mRNA covid vaccines.
Small Government Indeed!
Never before has government meddled in more things than now.
Republicans look the other way on every bit of this.
Those who dare to speak out like Thomas Massie or Rand Paul are ostracized, called RINOs and threated with primaries.
Related Posts
May 11, 2025: Budget and Deficit Common Sense from Rand Paul Gets Him Labeled a RINO
If you are looking for a RINO, look at Trump.
July 23, 2025: Trump Takes Aim at Massie Over Epstein Fiasco, Whom Do You Back?
Trump is now openly campaigning against Rep. Massie.
August 9, 2025: 12 Republicans Led by Massie Have the Votes Force Release of Epstein Files
“The American people deserve full transparency.”
But we are not going to get it. After campaigning on full disclosure, Trump now calls the Epstein investigation a hoax.
September 30, 2025: ‘TrumpRx’ Deal with Pfizer to Offer Discount Drugs Direct to Consumers
TrumpRx would allow people to buy drugs directly from a government website, at a discounted price negotiated by the government.
The Result of Trump’s Small Government Push
Please note US Debt Now Grows by $1 Trillion Every 150 Days
US national debt just topped $37 trillion and is growing fast.
Don’t be fooled by Trumpian small-government talk. Trump has done nothing but expand government spending while meddling in private business the most in history.
Point this out and you get labeled a RINO and politically targeted.
Doing multiple edits to longer posts here as I notice errors causes a post to be flagged as SPAM. Something is set too sensitive.
Don’t have that problem on other sites that use this same software.
Suggestion: if you have a longer comment, write and edit it offline, and only post here when finished.
For some, this is Zappa’s “brick wall at the back of the stage” moment.
Others noticed it a long time ago.
Still others will wait for CNN and FOX to officially announce it can be noticed.
So we have the radical right attacking the radical left.
Who the hell represents the middle? No One!
Why are there no worthy candidates running for political office?
One side spends absurd amounts on the Department of War the other on social benefits that de-motivate otherwise productive citizens.
These may be interesting times ~ but they are pretty fucked up!
Don’t blame “radicals”. Or “left” or “right”. Where does the money go — per capita?
Whatever you think the “middle” is, it brought us here.
So, the shitlibs with their stupid yard signs, are the “radical… LEFT”?! LOL
There is hardly any actual organized left in the US now. The PSL (I am quite sure you would have to look it up!!!!) is more or less invisible.
It’s not the left, or the right. It’s the wealthy.
And with more folks complicit via stock and housing bubble, that wealthy category grows. They are unwilling to watch the numbers-on-a-page go down EVER and thus the chance of meaningful change approaches zero. I talk to some GMC (gentrified-monied-class) friends whose homes have doubled and stocks 10x since 2009 and they want no part of any correction. In april when we had a nanonsecond of volatility they flopped on the boat deck like a fish out of water demanding oxygenated water to return.
Until and unless we see a meaningful lengthy correction or flattening in all prices–consumer, housing, stock, health care–there’s actually no hope. Given what occurs the instant we smell a whiff of one our Congress and Presidents make the Fed money presses go vrrrrrooom.
So I agree with the statement of “the wealthy” but want to expand on that as the wealthy is getting wider at the top as the bottome also gets wider, the middle unpleasantly squeezed lower or passively pushed upward.
The shut down does legitimately enhance the Executive branch’s power from the need of someone to triage what money there is to spend. The apparatus for which Biden was the figurehead goosed the economy in 2023-4 by reckless govt hiring. If this helps get rid of them without legal complications, that is good. Mish is being a little punctilious about the accomplishment of a worthy goal: shrinking the fetid Swamp is never easy.
More Americans blame Trump, Republicans for shutdown than Democrats
https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5534532-poll-shutdown-trump-republicans-blame/
Well they DO control all 3 branches of the government … this is a performance, and an excuse to foment civil unrest they can use as a reason to suspend elections.
What’s the point of cutting spending if it’s just going to be spent elsewhere, and then some?
Who is going to be fooled by this? Lots, actually. Sheeple will be sheeple.
Rich people get the money instead of the filthy poors.
What else could one expect from a self appointed dictator?
Spending priorities?!?!?
China buys around $6B in soybeans from the largest agri-corps in the US (maybe the world), and what does Trump do?
Looks to pay them $14B to help them out
Seriously, you can’t make this crap up
He’s buying votes with tax money, and keeping a bit for him and his friends.
This is not Republican party politics. This is all the work of one guy — cutting and pasting the Repub political platform as he sees fit. And they have spent so much time having their delusional 1950s world view denied to them (old white men running Christian nationalist sects wanting to have sex with 14 year old girls cause God says its ok) that they will do anything, believe anything, support anything that will make their twisted vision a reality even for a little while. They know this is the last gasp of white supremacy in America so they have all their chips on Mr Orange Hair. Even Mish seems surprised at what they have done (so far).
If the GOP would like to speak up, they can feel free to grow a spine any time now.
A spine just makes it uncomfortable to bend down and kiss the orange ass.
So, let me get this straight. The Republicans are going to take advantage of the shutdown and fire loads of people working for the government (Democrats supposedly, but, I don’t think anyone actually fills in that blank in their application). And doing so, is going to end a bunch of services (handouts if you want) that go to people undeserving (Democrats again, I assume?). And this, having a bunch of new unemployed people, and another group of people that aren’t receiving the benefits that they thought were coming to them, is going to make people love republicans?
Good luck with that!
I’m sure that while the republicans are doing the trump dance, Democrats are rubbing their hands together, just waiting for the blowout victory they are going to have in the midterms. Democrats have absolutely no reason to cave here. If they just stick with their “put the Obamacare subsidies back in” mantra, and the republicans hold out and create chaos, and fire people and we have a shitload of new people on unemployment, and the government stays closed and a bunch of people don’t get paid, trump and the republicans with get blamed for it, as it happened while they were in control of EVERYTHING.
You may be underestimating the stupidity of the average American citizen alive today.
wow, I have a saying -never underestimate the stupidity of Americans/ the American voter”
Assuming there will be a fair election…
Will ICE be at polling line-ups pulling people out?
The balanced budget government shutdown should be the message. Even during the shutdown, we will spend more than we take in. From the 2024 fiscal year budget, we spend more on mandatory programs not including defense than we take in taxes. You climb a mountain one step at time; not look at the mountain and say it is not there.
let’s look at harder numbers.
https://www.aspi.org.au/report/aspis-two-decade-critical-tec…
> The US led in 60 of 64 technologies in the five years from 2003 to 2007, but in the most recent five years (2019–2023) is leading in seven. China led in just three of 64 technologies in 2003–2007 but is now the lead country in 57 of 64 technologies in 2019–2023, increasing its lead from our rankings last year (2018–2022), where it was leading in 52 technologies.
The flip already was happening before Trump. He absolutely accelerated anti-immigrant, anti-work visa, and other variety of other-hate. But we were losing significant ground in technology to China before this.
Basically, if you want to go into a variety of fields, you learn in China, and you work in China.
Put simply, they are making factories for quantum chip production. And Photonic chips. https://thequantuminsider.com/2025/06/13/china-ramps-up-phot…
We’re basically playing with mud and sand and used to be good at metal casting. Not even good at that any more. I’m embarrassed to be an American.
Trump-style DEI hires, the home-schooled children of radical right-wing Christian nationalists, will close the gap.
Could have easily voted for the CR but nope had to have their showdown with Trump. Now he’s playing hardball- wah, wah, wah…
He’s playing whiffle ball. The Democrats could not care less about these tactics. They welcome Trump being a vengeful bully. It’ exactly what they want: escalated Trump.
I think Jefferies would disagree. Trump’s AI memes certainly didn’t sit well with him.
IMHO, I think the Dems are will be the clear loosers, when it’s all said & done & begin to gear up for the 2026 elections.
LMAO.
I know. They were hilarious memes.
I totally agree.
“Much of this is a clear violation of the law and the Constitution.”
Rick: “wah, wah, wah…”
He’s a deep thinker type obviously
He says waah waah because obv we could not understand such erudite words as he would otherwise speak /s
That’s an opinion you quoted. Opinions are like assholes- everybody has one.
TACO
The CR wasn’t clean, it took healthcare from millions and the GOP talking point on it is something they know is a disingenuous lie but they don’t care.
I don’t read Mish very much anymore.
Everything he says about Trump is disparaging.
Would he have preferred the wrecking ball of Harris instead?
That was the choice.
Yet here you are posting, LOL
Please go away Neil, you’re using up electricity falsely claiming you don’t care. Wasting oxygen and your life
Your point being that you would be happier with Harris/Walz destroying the country?
Isn’t there another option? Why not? It makes both parties seem weak — institutionally and cognitively.
Unfortunately, Neil, this site is overrun with Trump haters, Mish included.
So instead of engaging in meaningful debate, oftentimes what you get are ad hominem attacks. In fact, you probably saw there’s a poster with that moniker.
Welcome back! Your views are appreciated!
Cheers!
I am an equal party basher and generally cannot stand any of them.
I have praised and panned Trump, but I am hardest on the party in power.
Our two political choices are piss and poor.
Sure. I’m looking forward to some Trump praise soon.
We both agree, for sure, there are reasons to dislike him, although our reasons probably differ some.
Thank you, Ben.
Very kind of you.
Harris was no barrel of laughs but at least she had a brain
“Harris was no barrel of laughs but at least she had a brain”
What?!
Harris is a barrel of laughs because she has no brain.
>> but at least she had a brain
Yes, but where did she keep it?
Her famous quote that lost her the election:
“I can’t think of any.”
You don’t even need to know the question or the context.
Exactly! While many may not like his methods, Trump is turning the USS America away from the collision course with that iceberg that Brandon set us on & Comrade Kamala would have certainly sank the ship by ramming headfirst into.
No he is not doing that. Not even remotely close.
Oh, hell yes he is, especially if viewed through the lens of Comrade Kamala’s vision.
Again, there are real reasons to dislike some of this things Trump is doing. For example, he’s not turning the ship fast enough in terms of cost cutting. However, there’s only so much of that he can do without Congressional approval.
I read Mish every day. I appreciate his independent and critical thought. Critical thought is certainly lacking today and is much needed. Please stay with us Neil- argue for your positions whatever that might be and let us hear your point of view.
I want to be exposed to all positions that people hold in these tumultuous times. Please stay with us.
I’m certainly not 100% pro-Trump.
I would probably have been 100% anti- Harris.
I might prefer a Ron Paul and a government that bears some resemblance to the original concepts.
But this is what we have at this time in history. To me, under the circumstances of reality, the choice was clear.
I hear you. Ron Paul is in lockstep with the initial intent of the founders of this nation. Many young men today are so inclined as well. My grandsons (4 of them) see things in this light. I will not live to see the end result of what transpires, but I do not despair, sanity will ultimately prevail.
I can agree and appreciate the optimism.
No. There’s already plenty of space elsewhere for dopey Republicans and Democrats.
And, no, you won’t convince morons of anything. Honestly, I see the elite logic at times. IMO most of these people are perpetual suckers. IIRC PT Barnum said: Never give a sucker a chance. Suckers will be slaves to someone or something. Why not make them yours? I don’t endorse the logic but understand it.
All we independents can do is cry or laugh from the cheap seats or leave for another stadium.
“That was the choice.”
TPTB couldn’t do it without you!!! Congratulations!!
Do you think that TPTB wanted to reverse the open borders/mass migration/ sanctuary cities/ defund the police trainwreck?
We were very far gone and can’t get back to a lawful society overnight.
Chaos is a ladder. Keeps the proles off balance, everywhere they rule. In Ukraine. In Moldova. In Germany. In italy. Canada, AUS. NZ. UK. USA.
USA proles are not “special”.
>> Do you think that TPTB …
Yes. Yes, I do.
You’re aware of think tanks, yes? They conceive and debate plans. They do change, as circumstances warrant.
When the 1800’s barons built out enough of the continental rail network, they passed Chinese exclusion laws to make their lives miserable and encourage them to “self deport”. By now, even TPTB are noticing the rapid progress of AI renders useless the extra bodies from recent decades of encouraging illegal immigration. (I’m surprised it took them several extra years to recognize this. But, they don’t “turn on a dime”.)
By your logic, ‘TPTB’ are all- powerful and in control of everything.
So, we are helpless, hopeless, and doomed to failure no matter what is being done to us.
I think that your logic is seriously flawed and
that the opposite is probably true.
They’re greatly outnumbered and they know what that means.
“They’re greatly outnumbered and they know what that means.”
OMG They’re shaking in their boots.
“helpless, hopeless, and doomed”
History repeats.
You can’t fight what you don’t understand. I hope you’re young and will soon understand. But I look around at my aging cohorts who never escape establishment Overton windows, acknowledge you’re probably not different than them, and yes, have no hope either even if you’re young.
Well..if you marry into the elite or kill for them (whether you know that’s your purpose or not), you and your immediate colleagues will do fine materially. If that’s your definition of success, you’re not doomed.
…
I’m an old fuck. Never mind my rambling. Good luck to you. (No, seriously, good luck.)
One more thing: Do you know the story in The Prince about a ruler installing a puppet, encouraging the puppet to rule ruthlessly, later returning, killing the puppet, and basking in the glow of support from the rubes? TPTB know they can just drive us crazy with a few issues (insane shit like “trans” men beating up women in women’s sports) and we’ll vote for any “hero” they place in front of us. We’ll even “defend” that guy for a while because the pain of listening to people like Biden or Kamala still brings back nightmares.
Ivy colleges teach heirs and heiresses this logic early on. The kids who excel — they staff the think tanks or just tithe to them.
Everyone else dances to their tunes.
Off to your safe space, snowflake!
Perhaps you and ad hominem should spend your lives on this comment section encouraging people to be as cynical and defeated as you are. Seems like a waste of time to me.
Amend the FED’s charter to enable them to reduce the price of virtually everything at retail sale by 50% with equal debits and credits that sum to zero and all of major problems of modern economies resolve and profit making economics thrive like never before.
Implement a $1000/mo. universal dividend for everyone 18 and older and you can eliminate the welfare bureaucracy, cut income taxes deeper than terminally orthodox libertarians and probably head off civil war by transforming going to the store from an aggravating and depressing experience into the greatest opportunity to self actualize gratitude since meditation and prayer.
They’re not worried about what democrats would do with these powers, because they don’t intend to ever allow another free election.
Arm yourselves, or kneel.
We know how democrats act with power – like when Biden reduced access to Covid monoclonal antibodies to people in red states. Or – speaking of free elections – the Biden Administration slow-walking relief efforts in western North Carolina after Hurricane Helene so that fewer votes could be cast in Trump-supporting areas.
You left out the part where 7 states compromising about 25% of the US population were using 70% of the national supply of these drugs. Are you generally a dishonest person or just on the internet?
… to say nothing of all the horse paste they scarfed.
Now being pumped as the miracle cure for the New World Screwworm and stage 4 cancer.
The horse paste had tracking devices in it !
😉
He wants people to be able to take horse pills that don’t cure them, and then they can get all the antibodies they want, responsible citizens be damned.
I assume that quote is trustworthy. If those 7 states were using ~ 70% of the national supply, that’s news to me. I stand corrected on that. I stand by my general point that both parties wield power ruthlessly when it serves their purpose.
How can you trust your own points when they’re founded on faulty support?
Destined to be on your knees then.
LEAVE.
Even if there’s a civil war, do you really want to support one side of dumbed down proles over the other? The elite will fund both sides, wait, and retain power throughout it all.
No point in contributing to INCONSEQUENTIAL deaths.
This is my home, and I will not see it taken over by pigs.
Mish, you continue to be too slow to jump to conclusions when dealing with Trump. And, you’re way too calm.
I *LOVE* Mish. No more polite, genuine honest blogger have I read. AFAICT, he is an excellent role model. (Okay, he’s not “unique” in this regard. But, I feel it necessary to credit before critiquing. And I don’t want anyone here mocking me for sending him love letters….I’ve only sent one!). 🙂
But, I agree with you here. I think Mish has a “problem” where he “projects” better morality onto people and institutions than they deserve. People who lack an evil mind can’t imagine what TPTB do. They dismiss many non-TPTB “conspiracy theories”. They “wait for the data”. They “give the benefit of the doubt “. They accept stories of “incompetence” over “malice”.
Great analysis. I know that I’m going to get flamed, but you gave Trump too much credit when you said he pledged to end lawfare. There was no such thing.
Trump was being prosecuted by an independent DOJ because, as his actions has shown, he is incapable of following the law.
This does not mean that everything he does is criminal. Just that he does not think that the law applies to himself, so his actions are completely indifferent to criminal laws.
Can America finally stop the “both sides-ism” and admit that Trump is the only one weaponizing government and not the Democrats?
What are you talking about?
The government is totally weaponized by both sides. It didn’t start with Trump and definitely won’t end with him leaving office.
And it’s a feature, not a bug. You need the other side turning up the heat when they are in control of the presidential office. That’s the only way you are ever going to investigate and root out corruption. If people in power have nothing to fear things would get a lot worse than they are (look at the states that have had only 1 party in power for decades).
The other side turning up heat won’t do anything when the GOP will vote in lockstep to not impeach or remove from office any GOPer because of their party affiliation. You don’t honestly think they take their oath to the US Constitution seriously, do you? I mean, that would be the best laugh I’ve had in months.
Democrats haven’t weaponized government? LOL. They indicted Trump right into the GOP nomination in 2024. Every silly indictment raised his support.
AI does NOT agree that Democrats weaponized government.
Even if you lead the witless…
& ask for proof that they did…
the conclusion is the same:
“the available evidence largely points to standard legal processes and independent investigations, rather than a coordinated, politically motivated effort by Democrats to misuse federal agencies. Conversely, there is significant reporting and analysis suggesting that the Trump administration has engaged in more direct and explicit actions that align with the definition of weaponizing government against political opponents and institutions.”
And there has never been a Democratic equivalent to Trump’s bigly “Enemies Within” List:
Political Opponents and Critics
Former Government Officials and Investigators
News Organizations and Journalists
Educational Institutions and Student Protesters
Law Firms and Lawyers
Apparently AI never met LBJ.
Fair: AI must have been too lazy to go back 6 decades without prompting. But when specifically queried, it agrees that LBJ weaponized government.
He should, however, get some credit for federalizing the National Guard for a valid reason:
“In 1965, he federalized the Alabama National Guard to protect civil rights marchers from Selma to Montgomery after Governor George Wallace, a segregationist, refused to ensure their safety.”
The hardcore MAGA crowd has nothing left at this point except whataboutism or else embracing the straight up fascist direction of this administration. Asking them to stop pretending like this is normal or like anything the Democrats ever did or would conceivably do is asking a lot. They would have to admit to being fools who voted for fascism in America, led by a morbidly obese, senile, felonious pedarest who cakes on face paint with a trowel. If I voted for that I too would be psychologically desperate to save face somehow. Really how do you live with yourself at that point?
“An independent DOJ”
Lol
Mish,
You continue to be too quick to jump to conclusions when dealing with Trump.
“Point this out and you get labeled a RINO and politically targeted”.
This is NOT “jumping to conclusions”.. It’s reality. And I’m guessing there reality that supports the jump comment IS NOT REALITY AT ALL.
Wow I hope you can come back to a calm state. Again, you ignore context and I noted you selected sections of the WSJ article about OMB director.
“What A Show!”
Donald, the circus ringmaster.
The problem with this circus is that it is so badly managed that the entire tent is about to fall down and crush America.
Then the pickpockets will feast!