US agencies alerted to prepare for an imminent government shutdown
The U.S. is just hours away from a government shut down if Congress is not able to agree on a spending bill before midnight Friday.
House GOP leaders are reportedly considering a last-minute funding strategy to avoid the shutdown, by allowing lawmakers to take four separate votes on funding the government and raising the debt limit. The House GOP are set to hold a conference today to brief members. The new strategy comes after 38 Republicans voted against a spending bill backed by President-elect Donald Trump on Thursday. If Congress is unable to pass a spending bill before midnight, when government funding is set to lapse, then a shutdown begins.
When the government shuts down, all nonessential federal services cease while federal staff classed as essential workers, such as the TSA, police and air traffic control, may be forced to work without pay. That could mean flight delays and cancelations for the millions of people traveling home for holidays. On Friday, the White House Office of Management and Budget alerted federal agencies to prepare for an imminent government shutdown, the Washington Post reports.
Schumer calls on GOP to return to original spending plan
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is calling on House Speaker Mike Johnson to return to a stopgap funding agreement he had negotiated with Democrats. C-span
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has called on Republicans to return to the original spending plan after members of the GOP rebelled to reject Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s slimmed down proposal.
“It’s the quickest, simplest and easiest way we can make sure the government stays open,” the Democratic senator said today on the Senate floor as he warned time was running out before a government shutdown.
How long was the last government shutdown?
The last government shutdown was during Donald Trump’s first term as president, between December 22, 2018, to January 25, 2019, according to Britannica.
During that shutdown, many services were impacted. Flight traffic controllers were working long hours to compensate for the low number of fully-trained staff as many were quitting or calling in sick, the BBC reported.
Per the outlet, FBI resources also took a hit, with a report showing that the shutdown affected criminal, counter-terrorism and intelligence work, and other operations, meaning the service was at “breaking point.”
Coast Guard workers also struggled to afford food and cover the cost of their expensive coastal housing while they weren’t receiving pay, according to the BBC.
In addition, a report by Syracuse University found that more than 42,000 immigration hearings had been canceled as of January 11, 2019.
The second-longest government shutdown was for 21 days, between December 16, 1995, to January 6, 1996, while Bill Clinton was president.
Jimmy Carter’s terms as president had five of the top 10 longest government shutdowns, with one lasting 17 days, another for 12, one for 11 days, and then another two lasting eight days.
Musk appears to dismiss concerns over shutdown
Elon Musk appeared to dismiss concerns over the looming government shutdown on Friday.
The Tesla CEO shared a post on X that claimed that nothing “terrible” had happened during the last shutdown.
“Either the government should pass sensible bills that actually serve the people or shut it down!” Musk added.
Musk, who has been chosen to co-lead Donald Trump’s new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) in the new administration, had urged lawmakers to vote down an original bipartisan spending bill and said any lawmaker who supported it should be voted out of office.
Trump later echoed Musk’s opposition, calling for a rise in the debt limit to be added and warning that any Republican who backs the bill should face a primary challenge.
Musk and Trump’s opposition helped tank the legislation, which would have prevented a shutdown just before the Christmas period, leaving House Speaker Mike Johnson scrambling for an alternative.
Either the government should pass sensible bills that actually serve the people or shut it down! https://t.co/DxHyycW4jo
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 20, 2024
Trump calls looming government shutdown a ‘Biden problem to solve’
President-elect Donald Trump has said that the looming government shutdown is a “Biden problem to solve.”
Trump was commenting after the House of Representatives rejected his new plan to fund federal operations and suspend the debt ceiling a day before a government shutdown.
In a statement posted on Truth Social, the president-elect said: “Congress must get rid of, or extend out to, perhaps, 2029, the ridiculous Debt Ceiling. Without this, we should never make a deal. Remember, the pressure is on whoever is President.”
In a later statement on Friday morning, Trump passed the responsibility for the potential shutdown to the Biden administration, writing on Truth Social, “If there is going to be a shutdown of government, let it begin now, under the Biden Administration, not after January 20th, under “TRUMP.” This is a Biden problem to solve, but if Republicans can help solve it, they will!”
Mike Johnson says ‘We’ve got a plan’ as pressure grows over CR bill chaos
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., talks briefly to reporters just before a vote on an interim spending bill to prevent a government shutdown after President-elect Donald Trump abruptly rejected a bipartisan plan yesterday,… More J. Scott Applewhite/AP
House Speaker Mike Johnson has said he expects new votes to be held on Friday as time runs out for lawmakers to pass a temporary funding bill.
“We’re expecting votes this morning. So y’all stay tuned, we’ve got a plan,” Johnson told reporters as he arrived at the U.S. Capitol on Friday.
Johnson’s comments come as members of Congress face growing pressure to agree on a bill that will keep the government’s lights on for the short term. However, disagreements over what to include have increased the threat of a government shutdown over the Christmas period.
Wall Street futures slide as government shutdown looms before Christmas
Wall Street futures fell this week as a possible shutdown of the government looms before Christmas, while lawmakers discuss a temporary spending bill.
S&P 500 futures fell 1 percent ahead of the opening bell, while Dow Jones Industrial Average futures dropped 0.6 percent.
Lawmakers fell short of the two-thirds majority required to pass the measure before Friday’s midnight deadline. However, House Speaker Mike Johnson emphasized that he and fellow Republicans were committed to regrouping and finding an alternative solution to prevent a government shutdown.
The vote marked a significant setback for President-elect Donald Trump and his billionaire ally Elon Musk, who had criticized Johnson’s bipartisan deal—an agreement between Republicans and Democrats aimed at averting a government shutdown during the holiday season.