The Daily Fuckup

Washington spent Sept. 29, 2025, staring at a shutdown deadline that was now just hours away, with no deal and a fresh warning from the Trump administration: agencies should be ready for possible large-scale firings if the money runs out.

After the White House meeting ended without an agreement, the parties were still headed toward the Tuesday night, Sept. 30, 2025, funding deadline. Democrats and Republicans remained split over health care demands and a stopgap spending bill that would keep the government open for seven weeks.

The administration’s latest guidance did not say layoffs had already begun. It told agencies to prepare reduction-in-force plans if appropriations lapse and the work involved is not otherwise funded or tied to the president’s priorities. That is a sharper move than the familiar shutdown routine, where workers are typically furloughed and later return when funding resumes.

The budget office also said work needed to carry out those layoff plans could continue during a shutdown. That means planning for permanent cuts could keep moving even while other federal operations were paused.

For federal workers, the distinction is plain: a shutdown usually brings temporary furloughs. This threat raised the possibility of job eliminations layered on top of the lapse itself.

By day’s end, the basic picture had not changed. The deadline was still looming, the talks had not produced a deal, and the administration was still warning agencies about shutdown-era layoffs.