CNN anchor Jake Tapper fact-checked House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) on Thursday's edition of "The Lead" about a key claim Johnson and other Republicans have made about the ongoing government shutdown.
"The democrats keep deciding to keep the government shut down; they are forcing the administration to triage federal spending," Johnson said. "Why? Because they have turned off the funding streams, Jake. That is what's happened. They can make this stop immediately."
Republicans have tried to blame Democrats for the shutdown even though Republicans have control of the House, Senate, and White House. Tapper pushed back on Johnson's assertion.
"That's not really quite accurate," Tapper said. "I mean, Russ Vought is taking this opportunity to fire workers because they want to reduce the size of the federal workforce. None of these people are being paid anyway. It's not as though these furloughed workers are sapping up budget. They're not being paid. This is an opportunity by Russ Vought to shrink government, as he has outlined in Project 2025 and other places."
Johnson stammered before answering that the furloughed workers would get back pay once the government reopens. President Donald Trump has claimed to be on the fence about whether furloughed workers should get paid once they return.
