Vice President JD Vance warned Sunday that the longer the protracted government shutdown continues, the more “painful” and “deeper” the cuts to the federal workforce will become, even as the administration was forced to walk back hundreds of termination notices sent in error to vital public health staff.
As the budget impasse in Congress dragged into its second week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) was engulfed in chaos after roughly 1,300 employees received Reduction in Force (RIF) notices on Friday—a move that goes far beyond the traditional furloughs of previous shutdowns.
However, in a dramatic weekend reversal, officials confirmed that approximately 700 of those CDC staff, including personnel critical to disease surveillance, immunization, and outbreak response, were reinstated after the agency attributed the initial notices to a “coding error.”
‘Chaos’ and the Threat of Permanent Cuts
Appearing on Fox News, Vice President Vance defended the administration’s aggressive approach to staffing, arguing that the “chaos” was a direct consequence of Congressional Democrats refusing to pass a clean funding bill.
“The longer this goes on, the deeper the cuts are going to be,” Vance stated, adding that the administration was prioritizing funding for the military and essential services, leaving discretionary programs vulnerable. “To be clear, some of these cuts are going to be painful.”
The Vice President reiterated that the White House would not negotiate with Democrats who are demanding an extension of federal subsidies for health insurance under the Affordable Care Act as a condition to reopen the government.
The Trump administration’s strategy of commencing mass firings, rather than temporary furloughs, has triggered immediate legal challenges from federal unions. A court filing by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) indicated that over 4,000 employees across seven agencies—including Health and Human Services, Treasury, and Education—were set to receive termination notices.
CDC Error Underscores Stakes
The hasty firing and subsequent rehiring of crucial CDC staff exposed the high-stakes risks of the administration’s mass layoff initiative.
Among those mistakenly terminated and quickly reinstated were key “disease detectives” from the Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS), staff who produce the CDC’s critical Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, and the agency’s incident commander for the measles response.
While the agency’s leadership scrambled over the weekend to restore these vital public health roles, approximately 600 CDC staff, including those in violence prevention programs and specific administrative offices, reportedly remain separated from the agency as part of the initial RIF push.
Union representatives and Congressional Democrats have seized on the mistake as evidence of the administration’s recklessness. Even with the reinstatements, the threat of permanent staffing reductions—and the effective dismantling of federal programs—hangs over the entire civil service, turning the government shutdown from a temporary impasse into a fundamental restructuring of the federal bureaucracy.