US President-elect Donald Trump has demanded that Republicans in the US Congress break a broad agreement with Democrats and pass a narrower bill to avoid a shutdown.
In a post on his Truth Social media page, Trump threatened to help oust “any Republican who is stupid enough” to vote for the current version of the bill. Billionaire Elon Musk also seriously criticised the bill. The US Congress is in turmoil.
Earlier, the US congressional leadership agreed on a draft of the country’s temporary budget until March 2025 to prevent the government from being funded out of existence.
Congressman Steve Scalise, leader of the Republican majority in the House of Representatives, said on the evening of December 18 that the bill would not be passed after Trump condemned it.
The short-term funding bill must be passed by Congress by the end of this week to prevent many federal government agencies from shutting down starting on December 21. The bill is needed because Congress has yet to pass a budget for fiscal year 2025, which began on October 1. If Congress fails to act, government services ranging from the National Park Service to the Border Patrol will begin closing this weekend.
The 1,500-page bill included more than $110 billion for emergency disaster relief and $30 billion to help farmers. It also included pay raises for lawmakers, federal funds to rebuild a bridge that collapsed in Baltimore, and health care reforms.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said after Trump opposed the bill, “Republicans must stop playing politics with this bipartisan agreement or they will hurt hardworking Americans and create instability across the country. Provoking a devastating government shutdown will hurt families.”
When asked by CNN if the deal that existed was officially cancelled, Congressman Steve Scalise replied, “Yes.” He also added that “there is no new agreement at this point,” negotiations are ongoing. It is not yet clear how House Speaker, Republican Mike Johnson, plans to proceed.
There have been 21 government shutdowns or partial shutdowns in the US in the past five decades.
