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Why it matters: If the White House acts on that legal analysis, it would dramatically escalate President Trump's pressure on Senate Democrats to end the week-old shutdown by denying back pay to as many as 750,000 federal workers after the shutdown.

I'm not sure it would. In the past, federal workers were always paid after the government opened up. If they aren't paid this time when the GOP holds both the Executive and the Legislative branches, it would be silly to claim the Democrats would have the power to withhold payment.

Trump was also asked whether his administration intends to honor a law he signed during his first term, the Government Employee Fair Treatment Act of 2019, which requires furloughed workers to be paid “at the earliest date possible after the lapse in appropriations ends.”

Laws are not real any longer. No more laws; no more rules.

Oh so the Trump administration just deleted the gov't online reference to that law ...

https://www.govexec.com/pay-benefits/2025/10/omb-deletes-reference-law-guaranteeing-backpay-furloughed-feds-shutdown-guidance/408645/

I have a friend that works for TSA. A few days ago he showed up to work only to find that 27 of his peers decided not to. And considering they won't get back pay, what's the point? People need to feed and house themselves and the government has made it clear in the past that they're not about to treat essential employees as if they're actually essential.

Does this include ICE agents? That would be pretty funny.

I used to want to work for the federal government and once upon a time it was a very good job. Decent, but not the best, pay along with good health benefits, large amounts (in US terms) of leave, extra holidays, and a pension program. Now I don't see why anyone would want to work for the federal government. A common sentiment amongst government workers are that you are there for at least one of four things:

1.) Early retirement/pension - In the older days you could potentially fully retire as early as 50.

2.) Healthcare - You got to keep it into early retirement and it was typically better than any private or business insurance or medicare.

3.) Stability - Once in you would probably never be laid off or fired.

4.) Ulterior motives - A lot of government workers do what they do because they get something else out of it. Someone working at the EPA might get a sense of fulfillment and earnestly believe they are making a difference. Likewise someone working in ICE might be getting their failed-military-abuse-of-power rocks off on the bit of power they have over others.

Well the stability is gone, the pension only matters if you have the stability to get to 30 years, and the healthcare is getting worse over time.

But how is the government going to pay for this guy?

More proof that the GOP and all their supporters are enemies of the people of the United States of America.

He's going to steal backpay for workers he sent home. That's wage theft, and a good way to get your employees to hate you until the end of time.

this is why air traffic controllers are calling in sick. they took pains to assure workers would get pay eventually which is why this never happened on previous shutdowns. real genius this guy and the thing is even if he reverses course you can't trust him to not reverse again.

If there's no backpay, think they'll demand back taxes?

Something something UNIONS

Memos aren't law. Back pay will be payed eventually.

The "law doesn't matter" fatalists forget that the people who would be needed to implement a court ruling are the same group being threatened with their pay being withheld. The core of legal fatalism is that few people will risk their own personal best interests to stand up against tyranny, but in this case they're not standing up for someone else, they're writing checks to themselves and all their work friends for thousands of dollars. They're in a better material situation by writing the check, getting fired, and filing a lawsuit than just meekly going along.