Government Employees Confront Job Cuts as President Warns China with Tariff Hikes
Massive firings of government workers have commenced, as Republican lawmakers work to exert pressure on Democratic counterparts to end a government shutdown. The White House budget office characterized the reductions as “substantial,” with labor groups for federal workers taking the issue to litigation. The president commented that the job losses “will be a lot” and implied that those losing jobs would be in areas that were “Democrat oriented.”
Administration Declares Federal Worker Layoffs
The executive branch announced layoffs of government employees on Friday, fulfilling a threat it had issued in reaction to the US government shutdown, which now appears probable to stretch into a consecutive third week. The director of the administration's office of management and budget posted on social media that “RIFs have begun,” referring to the federal procedure to terminate staff.
President Warns Total Chinese Tariffs
The US president has threatened to enact additional American import taxes of 100% on Chinese goods from next month, charging the Chinese government of “very hostile” actions to limit shipments of minerals needed for US manufacturing. Financial markets fell sharply after the American leader reignited open disputes with the Beijing administration, and elevated the possibility of a further acrimonious commercial conflict between the planet's biggest economies.
National Guard Troops Spotted on City Streets
Reserve troops were observed patrolling in Memphis for the initial occasion on Friday, as part of the president's controversial federal taskforce, amid fierce legal challenges as he was prevented from deploying forces to Chicago and a judicial decision was pending in the Oregon city.
University Declines White House Proposal to Overhaul Procedures
The MIT has emerged as the initial US college to formally reject a executive offer that would overhaul university policies in return for preferential access to federal funding.
Administration Criticizes Perceived Peace Award Snub
The White House has denounced the peace prize panel's decision to grant the prestigious award to someone other than the president. “The Nobel committee demonstrated they place politics over harmony,” stated a White House aide and director of public relations.
What Else Happened Today:
- The chief executive had what he has characterized as a “biannual physical” at the military national military medical center.
- As many as forty US professors have been fired or disciplined after conservative campaigns focused on their comments on an assassination, causing a “climate of fear” on campuses.
- Leading New York Democrats have come together behind a state official a 24 hours after she was charged on financial charges by a federal prosecutor appointed by the president.
