Education Emails Altered to Blame Democrats

A Senate deadlock over funding — including disputes tied to expiring health‑insurance subsidies — left the federal government unfunded, and on the first day of the lapse many Department of Education employees discovered their automatic out‑of‑office emails had been altered without consent to say Senate Democrats were blocking a clean continuing resolution. Some employees who reverted the messages said the partisan text was restored, and union leaders and furloughed workers called the changes compelled speech that could violate the Hatch Act. Similar partisan banners and suggested out‑of‑office templates appeared on agency websites and in guidance at HUD, the SBA and other departments, reflecting a coordinated effort to pressure Democrats. Officials have not publicly identified who made the email changes, and experts warn politicizing ordinarily apolitical civil‑service communications risks eroding public trust in government impartiality.