Some federal agency websites are calling it a ‘Radical Left Democrat shutdown’

Some federal agencies are telling the American public on their websites that the government shutdown was caused by “radical left” lawmakers.

Democrats say the messages violate the Hatch Act, which restricts civil-service employees in the executive branch from engaging in political activity. One House lawmaker demanded an investigation.

The White House also added a shutdown clock to its official website, WhiteHouse.gov, that counts how long “Democrats have shut down the government.” 

Visitors to the Housing and Urban Development website are met with a message in a bright red box that says, “The Radical Left in Congress shut down the government. HUD will use available resources to help Americans in need.”

The Agriculture Department’s website says, “Due to the Radical Left Democrat shutdown, this government website will not be updated during the funding lapse. President Trump has made it clear he wants to keep the government open and support those who feed, fuel, and clothe the American people.”

A message on the Treasury Department’s website advises visitors, “The radical left has chosen to shut down the United States government in the name of reckless spending and obstructionism. As a result, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s websites will only be sporadically updated until this shutdown concludes. Please refer to Treasury’s contingency plans for more information.”

Others blame Democrats in less harsh ways.

“Democrats have shut down the government,” a Justice Department message says.

“The Democrat-led shutdown has halted several key functions of the Department of Commerce,” the Commerce website says.

Other federal websites don’t mention Democrats at all. The Education Department’s message says, “Due to a lapse of appropriations, information on this website may not be monitored or maintained. Inquiries may not receive a response until appropriations are enacted.”

The Department of the Interior also had a basic message, saying the website wasn’t being updated due to the federal shutdown.

The Environmental Protection Agency didn’t have a message at all.

Closer to the Oval Office, the White House press team uses automatic email messages that call out the Democrats.

“Due to staff shortages resulting from the Democrat Shutdown, the typical 24/7 monitoring of this press inbox may experience delays,” the email reads. “We ask for your patience as our staff work to field your requests in a timely manner. As you await a response, please remember this could have been avoided if the Democrats voted for the clean Continuing Resolution to keep the government open. The press office also cannot accommodate WAVES requests or escorts at this time. Thank you for your attention to this matter.”

Some Democrats and ethics groups say the partisan messages violate the Hatch Act, which restricts the partisan political activity by federal employees.

Public Citizen, a consumer advocacy organization, filed a complaint against HUD with the U.S. Office of Special Counsel that alleged that the message on the HUD website is a violation of the law.

“This is such an obvious violation of the Hatch Act that it raises the question: ’How on Earth does HUD think they can get away with this?’” Craig Holman, a government ethics specialist with Public Citizen who filed the complaint on behalf of his group, said in a statement. “The answer is that the Trump administration has managed to neuter the ethics enforcement offices in the executive branch. Those who are responsible for enforcing the Hatch Act — namely, the Office of Special Counsel, followed by the Office of Government Ethics and the Attorney General’s office — have all been taken over by Trump loyalists or those who are intimidated by Trump.”

HUD Secretary Scott Turner defended the website’s message on X on Thursday, saying it’s “not about ’propaganda’ or whatever deflection the media wants to use.”

“It’s about informing the American people of the consequences of the Radical Left’s shutdown,” he said. “This is their decision, and they need to own it.”

Rep. Robert Garcia, California Democrat and ranking member of the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, sent a letter to Jamieson Greer, acting special counsel, demanding an investigation into “the Trump Administration’s apparent illegal use of government resources to promote a false and partisan Republican political agenda.”

“Donald Trump and his administration are blatantly weaponizing the federal government and likely violating federal law to deflect blame for their shutdown,” Mr. Garcia said in a statement. “Our federal agencies are supposed to work for the American people, not one political party or ideology.”

“Republicans control the Senate, the House, and the White House, and instead of taking responsibility for their shutdown or working in good faith with Democrats to reopen our government, this administration is likely breaking the law to promote their false, extreme partisan political agenda on official government sites,” he said.

The Washington Times has reached out to the Office of Special Counsel for comment, but the response said they were out of office due to the lapse in federal appropriations.