Trump news at a glance: President hails shutdown as ‘opportunity’ to further campaign of cuts

The government has already announced the cancellation of billions of dollars in federal funding for projects tied to Democrats. Key US politics stories from Thursday 2 October at a glance

As the US government shutdown stretched into its second day, Donald Trump on Thursday hailed the funding lapse as an unprecedented opportunity" to further his campaign of firing federal workers and downsizing departments.

The president announced on social media that he would sit down with Russell Vought, the White House office of management and budget chief, an architect of the mass firings and buyouts of federal workers.