Johnson Blames Schumer and Senate Democrats for Prolonged Government Shutdown as President Trump Moves Forward with Budget Cuts

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson has made it clear that Democrats, led by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, are responsible for the continued pain of the government shutdown. His comments came as President Donald Trump and his budget chief, Russ Vought, began reviewing which federal programs should face cuts amid the ongoing standoff.

“This is the way the system works. This is [Senate Minority Leader] Chuck Schumer’s decision, is to hand … the keys to the kingdom to the president,” Johnson, R-La., told reporters. “He has put himself in that situation, and it’s completely unnecessary. The president takes no pleasure in this.”

The shutdown continues after Senate Democrats refused to back a seven-week stopgap funding bill passed by the GOP-led House. Without it, government agencies have entered contingency operations, delaying payments and scaling back functions.

Earlier in the day, President Trump posted on Truth Social that he would meet with Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russ Vought — “he of PROJECT 2025 Fame” — to decide which agencies and programs should be on the chopping block.

“I have a meeting today with Russ Vought … 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.

“I can’t believe the Radical Left Democrats gave me this unprecedented opportunity. They are not stupid people, so maybe this is their way of wanting to, quietly and quickly, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”

Under Vought’s direction, the Trump administration has already frozen billions in funding for New York City subway projects, while agencies carry out shutdown protocols — delaying employee payments and reevaluating spending priorities in line with White House goals.

Johnson defended Vought’s work as both necessary and unavoidable.
“As you know, whomever is seated in the chair at OMB during the shutdown has to do the same thing,” Johnson said. “We had a 45-minute telephone conference with [Vought] yesterday. He talked to all the House Republicans. He takes no pleasure in this … because Russ has to sit down and decide, because he’s in charge of that office, which policies, personnel and which programs are essential, and which are not. That is not a fun task, and he is not enjoying that responsibility.”

Johnson added that Vought’s decisions reflect the administration’s duty to uphold its priorities.
“Now, when he sits down as the director of OMB, he will obviously have a subjective determination on the priorities,” Johnson said. “And what do you think he would do? Because what would any OMB director do under any president? They’re going to look to see for the administration’s priorities first and ensure that those are funded.”

The Speaker made clear that the standoff could end immediately if Senate Democrats “came to their senses.”
“It could end today if the Senate Democrats would come to their senses and do the right thing for the American people,” he said. “But if they don’t, and if they keep the government closed, it’s going to get more and more painful, because the resources run out, and more and more things have to be reduced and eliminated.”

Despite mounting pressure, Senate Democrats blocked the clean House-passed short-term funding bill for the 10th time since the government shutdown began nearly two weeks ago.

With senators preparing to leave Washington for another extended weekend after just three days in session, the Democratic majority effectively guaranteed that the shutdown will continue into next week.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., vowed to keep reintroducing the House-passed continuing resolution, which would reopen the government through November 21. Some Republicans have floated a modified version with a new expiration date, though that would require the House — currently in recess — to return for another vote.

Meanwhile, Schumer and Senate Democrats remain fixated on securing a deal over Obamacare subsidy extensions and are urging President Trump to personally engage in talks — a demand that underscores how the Left continues to leverage the crisis for partisan gain.