Dem
47
GOP
53
OMB Director Russell Vought is absolutely giddy about the shutdown. It's like his birthday, Christmas and Halloween combined. It's the gift that keeps on giving. Every day he gets out of bed thinking: "How can I use this wonderful new tool that I have been given to destroy the government and punish Donald Trump's enemies all at once?" The latest installment is unilaterally canceling large government contracts in blue cities and states.
On the first day of the shutdown, Vought axed $18 billion for two major infrastructure projects in New York City: the Hudson River Tunnel Project and the Second Avenue Subway Project. Take that, New York! We hate you! He also canceled $8 billion in climate-related projects in California, Colorado, and Connecticut. Also $2 billion in funding for the Chicago transit system. Andrew Jackson is probably scratching his head wherever he may be, thinking: "Somebody got the spoils system kind of backwards. The idea is to reward your friends, not punish your enemies."
Vought is now ordering the Army Corps of Engineers to delay or cancel another $11 billion in projects in Baltimore, Boston, New York City and San Francisco. He said these were low-priority projects and blamed the shutdown. This is an out-and-out lie and Vought, who is a master of every line in the budget, knows this. The funding comes from sources not blocked by the shutdown, and the Army Corps of Engineers is part of the Army and no members of the Armed Forces have been furloughed.
One of the big differences between Trump v1.0 and Trump v2.0 is that while Vought was OMB director last time as well, Trump kept him on a short leash in his first term. This time, he has dropped the leash and let Vought run wild, fulfilling all his fantasies about destroying the government while also staying in Trump's good graces. Even if the Democrats get the trifecta in 2028, it will take a long time to repair all the damage Vought has done. (V)