Some furloughed workers at the Department of Education expressed shock on Thursday to find that their out-of-office email messages had been changed without their knowledge to reflect the Trump administration’s view that the government shutdown was the fault of “Democrat Senators.”
“Unfortunately, Democrat Senators are blocking passage of H.R. 5371 in the Senate which has led to a lapse in appropriations,” the emails said. “Due to the lapse in appropriations I am currently in furlough status. I will respond to emails once government functions resume.”
One Education Department employee, who like another worker interviewed for this story spoke on the condition of anonymity out of fear of retribution, said they wanted to change the language but worried that logging into the system might violate a federal law that prohibits furloughed employees from working.
The language apparently inserted into the emails, which the system automatically sends in response to incoming correspondence, echoes messages plastered on a number of government websites and social media accounts since the government ceased most operations on Wednesday. Congress has unable to agree on how to fund the government, and congressional Democrats refuse to agree to a spending plan that does not restore funding for Medicaid and extend health insurance subsidies.
Some agencies updated their websites on Wednesday with boldface messages announcing the shutdown and laying the blame on Democrats. In some cases they referenced the “radical left,” echoing Republican talking points. Notably, the Education Department’s website has not been among those casting blame on Democrats.
Multiple agencies directed federal workers to include similarly partisan language in their out-of-office email responses notifying senders that they would not be able to write back until the government reopened.
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