(MENAFN) The Trump administration took swift action on Wednesday, freezing $26 billion in federal funds allocated to Democratic-led states as the U.S. government entered a shutdown for the first time in nearly seven years. President Donald Trump described the shutdown as a "good" opportunity to eliminate "things that we didn't want."

White House budget director Russell Vought announced that roughly $8 billion earmarked for what he called "Green New Scam funding to fuel the Left's climate agenda" will be cut. This move affects 16 states, the majority of which are governed by Democrats.

In addition, the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) suspended $18 billion in infrastructure funding for New York, a state represented by Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries—both frequent targets of President Trump, according to a The New York Times report released Wednesday.

The department attributed the halt in funding to Schumer and Jeffries, stating, "Thanks to the Chuck Schumer and Hakeem shutdown, however, USDOT's review of New York's unconstitutional practices will take more time." It added, "Without a budget, the department has been forced to furlough the civil rights staff responsible for conducting this review."

Senate Democratic Leader Schumer accused the administration of leveraging the shutdown as a political weapon. "He is using the American people as pawns, threatening pain on the country as blackmail," Schumer said.

The U.S. Senate failed to pass a short-term spending bill on Wednesday, triggering the shutdown. About 750,000 federal workers have been ordered to stop working, while others continue without pay, media reported Thursday.

President Trump, meanwhile, remained defiant, asserting on Tuesday, "A lot of good can come down from shutdowns. We can get rid of a lot of things that we didn't want."

MENAFN02102025000045017169ID1110141126