US President-elect Donald Trump suddenly rejected a previous plan between the Republican and Democratic parties to prevent a government shutdown, and asked for it to be renegotiated, while the White House warned that the government shutdown would lead to unrest throughout the country.
Congress had reached a budget agreement that would provide funding for the federal government until mid-March, thus avoiding a government “shutdown” before the end of the year holiday.
A government shutdown occurs if the budget approval plan is disrupted and the Senate and House of Representatives fail to approve all of its items, which occurs as a result of a gap in government funding. Any closure of the US government means paralysis of unnecessary federal departments, as all services provided by those departments stop except services. Vitality.
“Republicans have to be smart and tough,” Trump said in a joint statement with Vice President Jay DeVance. “If Democrats threaten to shut down the government unless we give them everything they want, know that they are bluffing.”
Trump indicated that the concessions made to Democrats in the bill entailed a “betrayal of our country,” and in return he presented an almost unrealistic proposal that combined the continuation of some government funds along with a more controversial provision to raise the country’s debt limit, something that his party routinely rejects.
He asked House Speaker Mike Johnson and Republicans to essentially renegotiate days before a deadline for federal funding to run out, something Democrats denounced.
Trump’s sudden entry into the debate and new demands led to escalating tensions in Congress at a time when lawmakers are trying to finish their work and head home for the holidays, making Johnson rush to develop a new plan before the deadline tomorrow, Friday, to avoid a shutdown.
For its part, the White House was quick to denounce Trump’s position, accusing the Republican opposition of playing “political games” and warning of “unrest throughout the country” if government paralysis occurred.
US Presidential spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement, “Republicans must stop playing political games with this agreement reached between the two parties, otherwise they will hurt hardworking Americans and cause instability throughout the country.”
Before Trump’s position, it was expected that the text of the government financing agreement would be approved in the Republican-dominated House of Representatives before being referred to the Senate for approval and then to President Joe Biden for his signature and publication into force.
The agreement provides more than $100 billion in aid to prevent natural disasters and address their effects, proposed by President Joe Biden, and $10 billion in aid to American farmers.
Time is running out because Congress has a deadline of midnight on Friday to adopt a temporary funding measure for federal public services, otherwise the United States will face a new “shutdown.”
The “lockdown” places hundreds of thousands of state employees on technical unemployment, leads to the freezing of many social assistance and the closure of some nurseries, and this situation is very undesirable in the United States, especially with the holiday season approaching.
Funding federal departments is a recurring subject of dispute in the United States, and there are disagreements over it even within the Republican camp between moderate conservatives and Trump supporters who call for a significant reduction in federal spending.
Republicans will regain the majority in the Senate in early January, while Trump will return to the White House on the 20th of the same month. Republicans will then work on a new budget that will secure funding for Trump’s program, especially with regard to deporting immigrants, increasing oil extraction, and reducing taxes.
