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The Department of Education has also confirmed to the Guardian that their employees will be impacted by the reductions in force.<\/p>\n
Share<\/a>White House budget office says layoffs are ‘substantial’<\/p>\n The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) spokesperson told the Guardian that the reductions in force that have begun are \u201csubstantial\u201d.<\/p>\n The official didn\u2019t confirm an exact number, but we\u2019re bringing you the latest as we hear from different agencies and departments about how they stand to be affected.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Treasury department confirms that RIFs have begun<\/p>\n A treasury department spokesperson confirms to the Guardian that mass layoffs have started. They did not comment on the scale of the firings.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Donald Trump has returned from his visit to Walter Reed medical center for his \u201csemi-annual physical\u201d. He didn\u2019t take questions from reporters on his way back to the White House.<\/p>\n We\u2019re due to hear from him at 5pm ET in the Oval Office for an announcement about lowering the cost of drug prices.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a014.54 EDT<\/p>\n DHS says layoffs will happen at cybersecurity agency<\/p>\n A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson has told the Guardian that reductions in force (RIFs) will happen at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) while the government shutdown continues.<\/p>\n \u201cDuring the last administration CISA was focused on censorship, branding and electioneering. This is part of getting CISA back on mission,\u201d the spokesperson said.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Trump to host summit on Gaza with world leaders during Egypt visit \u2013 report<\/p>\n Donald Trump plans to hold a summit of world leaders on Gaza, during his visit to Egypt next week, according to Axios.<\/p>\n Citing four sources with knowledge of the plans, Axios reports that the summit is being organized by Egyptian president Abdul Fattah al-Sisi, who has already reached out to several European and Arab leaders with invitations. According to a US official, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu will not be present, and the meeting will likely take place on Tuesday in Sharm-el-sheikh, but could be moved to Monday, according to Axios\u2019 sources.<\/p>\n A reminder that Trump is set to address Israel\u2019s Knesset on Monday, before travelling to Egypt.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a014.14 EDT<\/p>\n Here’s a recap of the day so far<\/p>\n The White House announced layoffs of federal workers are to come as the government shutdown continues. In an ominous post on social media, budget chief Russ Vought wrote that \u201creductions in force\u201d (laying off federal workers) have begun, as the shutdown enters its 10th day.<\/p>\n On Capitol Hill, the impasse continues, as House speaker Mike Johnson said the lower chamber won\u2019t return until the Senate decides to \u2018turn the lights back on\u2019. Republican leadership continued to lambast Democrats, blaming them for the shutdown and saying that a separate bill to keep members of the military paid was redundant since the House-passed legislation \u2013 which has stalled in the upper chamber seven times \u2013\u00a0would reopen the government. \u201cWe have voted so many times to pay the troops. We\u2019ve already done it. We did it in the house three weeks ago, the ball is in the court of Senate Democrats right now,\u201d Johnson added.<\/p>\n The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has become the first of nine universities to reject an agreement that would exchange adoption of the Trump administration\u2019s higher education agenda for favorable treatment and funding. Sally Kornbluth, the MIT president, wrote to the Trump administration<\/a> to say that \u201cthe university has already freely met or exceeded many of the standards outlined in the proposal, but that she disagrees with other requirements it demands, including those that would restrict free expression\u201d.<\/p>\n We\u2019re waiting to hear the ruling from a federal court in San Francisco, over Trump\u2019s deployment of troops to Portland, Oregon. Three appellate judges heard arguments on Thursday and seemed more likely to rule in Trump\u2019s favor than the decision by a federal judge in Chicago, who blocked troops from deploying to the windy city. The administration has said it plans to appeal the ruling.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n One note on the announced layoffs of government workers. A federal judge will actually hear arguments next week over the legality of the reductions in force during the shutdown. This comes after the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) sued the administration over the layoff threat earlier this week.<\/p>\n The AFGE is the largest union representing federal workers.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a014.50 EDT<\/p>\n US government workforce cuts have begun, OMB chief says<\/p>\n Donald Trump\u2019s White House budget chief, Russ Vought, just ominously posted on X that \u201creductions in force\u201d (laying off federal workers) have begun, as the government shutdown enters its 10th day. He offered no further details, but we\u2019ll bring you more as soon as we get it.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a012.41 EDT<\/p>\n MIT becomes first university to reject White House offer for special funding treatment<\/p>\n The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has become the first university to reject an agreement that would exchange adoption of the Trump administration\u2019s higher education agenda for favorable treatment and funding.<\/p>\n The administration\u2019s proposal \u2013 the \u201cCompact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education\u201d \u2013 was sent to nine universities and set out a list of requirements including a cap international student enrollment, freezing tuition for five years, adhering to definitions of gender and creating a more \u201cwelcoming\u201d environment on campuses for conservatives. Doing so would give the institutions preferential access to federal funding.<\/p>\n Sally Kornbluth, the MIT president, wrote to the Trump administration to say that \u201cthe university has already freely met or exceeded many of the standards outlined in the proposal, but that she disagrees with other requirements it demands, including those that would restrict free expression\u201d.<\/p>\n She added:<\/p>\n Fundamentally, the premise of the document is inconsistent with our core belief that scientific funding should be based on scientific merit alone.<\/p>\n The other eight colleges are the University of Arizona, Brown University, Dartmouth College, the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Southern California, the University of Texas, Vanderbilt University and the University of Virginia.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a013.29 EDT<\/p>\n National guard troops seen on Memphis streets as Trump faces legal challenges<\/p>\n National guard troops were seen patrolling in Memphis for the first time on Friday, as part of Donald Trump<\/a>\u2019s controversial federal taskforce, amid fierce legal challenges as he was blocked<\/a> from sending troops to Chicago and a court ruling is awaited in Portland, Oregon.<\/p>\n At least nine national guard troops began their Tennessee patrol at the Bass Pro Shops, an outdoor gear chain, located at the Pyramid, a commercial landmark<\/a> in Memphis. They were being escorted by a Memphis police officer and posed for photos with visitors who were standing outside.<\/p>\n It was unclear how many federalized troops<\/a> were on the ground or were expected to arrive later.<\/p>\n Members of the national guard patrol outside a Bass Pro Shops in Memphis, Tennessee, on Friday. Photograph: George Walker IV\/AP<\/p>\n During an NAACP Memphis forum on Wednesday, Memphis\u2019s police chief, Cerelyn \u201cCJ\u201d Davis, had said she hoped guard personnel would help direct traffic and have a presence in \u201cretail corridors\u201d, but not be used to operate checkpoints or anything similar \u2013 the kind of situation Washington<\/a> DC experienced<\/a>.<\/p>\n Memphis authorities did not request federal troops but Tennessee\u2019s Republican governor, Bill Lee, supports the move by the White House.<\/p>\n Read the full story here:<\/p>\n Share<\/a>US immigration enforcement using military hardware and tactics on civilians Even without the national guard, law enforcement agencies of the federal government have been using military hardware and tactics on civilian targets.<\/p>\n At a low-rent apartment complex on Chicago\u2019s south shore, people started hearing the boots hit the roof around one in the morning. The oh-dark-thirty immigration<\/a> enforcement raid in the early hours of 1 October featured an air assault from helicopters. Officers went door to door in the building, using charges to blow the hinges off doors and flashbang grenades to clear apartments. They hauled men, women and children from the building in zip ties and often little else, ostensibly to capture undocumented gang members.<\/p>\n![\"George](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/George-Chidi.jpg\")
George Chidi<\/p>\n