The White House is furloughing roughly a third of its staff as Democrats continue to block approval of a spending plan to fund the federal government.
A contingency plan posted on Thursday shows which offices the White House is prioritizing, with core political operations shielded and other agencies taking the hit as Democrats continue to keep the government shut down.
The Executive Office of the President’s (EOP) Contingency Plan for Shutdown Furlough sent to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russ Vought shows that 554 of the EOP’s 1,733 employees will be furloughed, while 1,179 will remain on the job. Democrats have refused to pass a funding measure unless it includes an estimated $300 billion to extend Obamacare subsidies and nearly $200 billion to restore health care benefits for illegal immigrants and other non-citizens, among other demands.
All 45 officials at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) are being retained because their compensation comes from sources other than annual appropriations. At the OMB, 437 of 530 employees will continue working.
Only one member of the National Security Council staff will be furloughed, according to the plan. Meanwhile, 175 of the 373 employees who work in the White House Office — the team that directly serves the president — will continue working through the shutdown.
Sixteen of the 25 employees at the Council of Economic Advisers will be sidelined, compared with 10 of the 25 staffers at the Council on Environmental Quality.
The Office of Administration, which manages the White House’s internal operations, will retain 177 employees and furlough 91. The U.S. Trade Representative’s office will keep more than 200 staffers on duty, given its key role in the administration’s ongoing trade negotiations, including with China.
The Office of National Drug Control Policy furloughed 48 of its 56 employees, while the Office of the Vice President furloughed 3 of its 18 staff. The Executive Residence at the White House, which oversees the White House and grounds, retained 40 of its 82 staff members.
As Democrats continue to stall, Vought is spearheading an effort to significantly reduce the federal workforce on projects he says are “not consistent with the president’s priorities.” The OMB director has also announced major spending cuts since the shutdown began, including $8 billion from “green energy” projects, along with freezes on $18 billion for New York City’s infrastructure projects and $2.1 billion for Chicago transit.
The White House referred the Daily Caller News Foundation to OMB for comment, but the agency did not respond.
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