'More pain will be inflicted': Top Republican delivers ominous threat to blue states

U.S. President Donald Trump gestures next to U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), on the day of a closed House Republican Conference meeting on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 20, 2025. REUTERS/Ken Cedeno

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson is threatening that Republicans and the Trump administration will further target Democrats and blue states, just hours after the federal government shut down over a health care funding battle.

On Thursday morning, the Trump administration came under fire after Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought froze $18 billion in federal funds for New York City infrastructure projects, saying that the move was intended “to ensure funding is not flowing based on unconstitutional DEI principles.”

But a later Department of Transportation memo appeared to at least partially link the funding freeze to Democrats refusal to vote for legislation that would have kept the government running, while continuing the large scale cuts to health care that Democrats vehemently oppose.

That DOT memo called the funding freeze “another unfortunate casualty of radical Democrats’ reckless decision to hold the federal government hostage to give illegal immigrants benefits.”

Democrats are not attempting to “give illegal immigrants benefits.”

“Johnson on Wednesday echoed threats from President Donald Trump that a shutdown’s burdens would fall disproportionately on Democrats by slashing blue-state funding and potentially government ‘benefits,'” Politico reported.

“The longer this goes on, the more pain will be inflicted,” Johnson said during a morning news conference.

Johnson also said he believes more Americans will oppose the shutdown “as the pain increases.”

OMB Director Vought “is expected to discuss plans for mass [federal government] firings and the funding cuts Trump has threatened,” in a call with House Republicans later Wednesday.

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