House Speaker Mike Johnson speaks to reporters after meeting with President Donald Trump at the White House, with Vice President JD Vance, Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russell Vought, and Senate Majority Leader John Thune, September 29, 2025. [REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst]

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said that the federal government shutdown due to the budget impasse has given President Donald Trump "the keys to the kingdom."

The Hill reported that Johnson told a Louisiana radio host that the shutdown could "ultimately be helpful to Trump's overall approach to reducing the size of government."

Johnson suggested that the White House could seize the opportunity to enact spending cuts that Republicans could not secure in the Senate, which would ultimately benefit Trump.

Johnson's remarks came shortly after a press conference in Washington where Republican leadership urged Democrats to support a short-term funding plan to keep the government operating.

He was questioned about comments made by Charlie Kirk in 2019, who stated that a government shutdown offered an opportunity to drastically shrink the size of government.

Johnson responded that while there can be positive outcomes from a shutdown, it has both pros and cons.

The cons include thousands of federal employees being furloughed or working without pay, and limitations on access to some government programs.

Johnson explained that the "upside" is similar to what Charlie Kirk mentioned and what he discussed with the president in the Oval Office 48 hours prior: it gives the party in power, the president, the opportunity to unilaterally decide which government programs are essential and which are not, without a congressional vote.

"Chuck Schumer, in his great wisdom, just walked right into that trap," Johnson said, adding that it "effectively handed the keys to the kingdom to President Trump."

He continued, "What Charlie Kirk said a few years ago is correct. We're going to have the opportunity to get rid of some of these federal programs that are unnecessary and bloated, which we wanted to vote against, but we couldn't get the votes in the Senate."

These remarks were reiterated in an interview with Fox Business.

Russell Vought, the director of the Office of Management and Budget, indicated that spending cuts were already underway, posting on Wednesday afternoon: "Approximately $8 billion for green new deal initiatives to advance the left's climate agenda is being rescinded. Details forthcoming from the Department of Energy."

He then listed the states where these projects are located: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington.

Vought had previously stated that federal agencies should prepare to issue furlough notices in the event of a government shutdown.

By NNP Editor-in-Chief Hong Sung-goo / Special Contribution NNP info@newsandpost.com