Federal Judge Blocks Trump Administration's Mass Layoffs During Government Shutdown Crisis

A senior US official indicated that more than 10,000 federal employees could face layoffs as the government shutdown enters its third week.

In San Francisco, Federal Judge Susan Illston issued a temporary restraining order on Wednesday blocking the Trump administration from proceeding with layoffs of thousands of federal workers during the ongoing government shutdown, according to multiple media reports.

The judge's decision came in response to a lawsuit filed by labor unions alleging that these layoffs violate federal law. Various news outlets including The Washington Post confirmed the court's intervention.

Shortly before the judicial order, White House Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought had stated in an interview with the Charlie Kirk show that the administration anticipated laying off "probably north of 10,000" federal employees.

"We want to be very aggressive where we can be in shuttering the bureaucracy," Vought remarked during the interview.

As the shutdown continues into its third week, Congress remains at an impasse over spending legislation, while Republican President Donald Trump follows through on threats to significantly reduce the federal workforce.

During the court proceedings, Judge Illston expressed serious concerns about the government's approach to terminating federal employees. According to The Washington Post, she stated: "The evidence suggests that the Office of Management and Budget and the Office of Personnel Management have taken advantage of the lapse in government spending, in government functioning, to assume all bets are off, the laws don't apply to them anymore."

President Trump has previously warned that continued Democratic opposition to the House-passed resolution funding the government through late November would result in massive layoffs targeting workers he perceives as aligned with the opposition party.