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Employees across several government departments furloughed during the government shutdown say their email accounts were updated with out-of-office messages that blame Senate Democrats for the funding lapse.
The replies stated that House Democrats had blocked a continuing resolution that would have extended funding through November.
“Thank you for contacting me. On September 19, 2025, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 5371, a clean continuing resolution. Unfortunately, Democrat Senators are blocking passage of H.R. 5371 in the Senate which has led to a lapse in appropriations. Due to the lapse in appropriations I am currently on furlough status. I will respond to emails once government functions resume,” the new message read.
A staff member told Federal News Network they had not written the response themselves. “Those were not my words,” the employee said. The department, which has furloughed about 87% of its workforce under its contingency plan, has not publicly addressed the claims.
Agencies use official channels for shutdown blame
Federal News Network reported that multiple agencies have issued similar messages during the shutdown, placing responsibility for the funding gap on Democrats.
On Tuesday, an all-staff email stated that “President Trump opposes a government shutdown” and “strongly supports” the House-passed resolution to keep funding in place until November 21. “Unfortunately, Democrats are blocking this continuing resolution in the US Senate due to unrelated policy demands,” the message continued.
The Hatch Act rules
The Hatch Act prohibits federal employees from using official capacity to make political statements, raising compliance questions about the shutdown messages.
At the Department of Housing and Urban Development, a notice on its website declared that the “Radical Left are going to shut down the government and inflict massive pain on the American people unless they get their $1.5trillion wish list of demands.”
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The Agriculture Department added a banner on Thursday stating, “due to the Radical Left Democrat shutdown, this government website will not be updated during the funding lapse.” It added: “President Trump has made it clear he wants to keep the government open and support those who feed, fuel, and clothe the American people.”
The Treasury Department issued a similar warning, telling visitors its websites would be “sporadically updated” until the shutdown ends. “The radical left has chosen to shut down the United States government in the name of reckless spending and obstructionism,” its statement read.
With most Education Department workers on furlough and only a few hundred exempt employees working unpaid in the Office of Federal Student Aid, the political messaging is sparking around neutrality and abuse of power through workplace communications during the shutdown.
