This Is What Trump Had to Say to Air Traffic Controllers Who Stayed Home During Schumer Shutdown
You have to hand it to President Trump—he doesn’t mince words when it comes to getting the country back on track, and his latest Truth Social post to air traffic controllers during the Schumer Shutdown is a case in point. With day 40 of this Democrat-engineered mess hitting hard, Trump demanded they return to work immediately, warning that anyone who doesn’t will face docked pay. “All Air Traffic Controllers must get back to work, NOW!!! Anyone who doesn’t will be substantially ‘docked,’” he wrote, adding a $10,000 bonus recommendation for those who toughed it out without pay during the “Democrat Shutdown Hoax.”
Regarding govt shutdown and FAA cutting flights:
-this shows why we shouldn’t have govt running anything. Privatize air traffic control.
-there are 3,000 air traffic controller vacancies. I keep hearing that young people can’t get jobs…ATC pays 6 figures. Yeah it’s higher… pic.twitter.com/iMyJ94HgUu— Ruth Roberson (@RenaissanceRuth) November 6, 2025
The shutdown’s been a nightmare for flyers—over 4,000 cancellations this weekend alone, thanks to understaffed FAA towers as controllers called in sick or stayed home amid the financial stress. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy called it out on X, noting how the chaos is rippling through lives and the economy.
In Nashville today, I met an air traffic controller, Doc, who has 8 kids!
As a father of 9, I can tell you kids go through groceries fast! Air traffic controllers should worry about keeping our skies safe, not about how they will feed their families.
Democrats: end the… pic.twitter.com/cdLUHJfYM2
— Secretary Sean Duffy (@SecDuffy) October 28, 2025
Trump didn’t stop there, slamming those who “did nothing but complain” as not stepping up against the “FAKE DEMOCRAT ATTACK,” and suggesting replacements if they quit—no severance for quitters. The attached screenshot from FAA’s site shows a slew of open air traffic controller positions—$43,727 to $165,088 base pay, with spots in places like Guam, Puerto Rico, and San Francisco—hinting at the hiring push to fill gaps left by the shutdown.
It’s a tough-love approach, but one that resonates when you see the human cost—families grounded, businesses stalled, all because Dems like Schumer and Clark used “leverage” to push their agenda, admitting families would suffer. Trump’s bonus for the loyal ones? A nod to those who kept skies safe without a paycheck, while the holdouts get a wake-up call. It’s classic Trump—reward hard work, call out the slackers, and get the job done.
The FAA listings scream urgency: positions in high-need areas, with feedback requested—proof the system’s scrambling to catch up. This shutdown’s on Dems, but Trump’s pushing for solutions, not excuses.
Mark Van der Veen offers some of the most analytical and insightful writings on politics. He regularly opines on the motives and political calculations of politicians and candidates, and whether or not their strategy will work. Van der Veen offers a contrast to many on this list by sticking mainly to a fact-based style of writing that is generally combative with opposing ideologies.
