U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Los Angeles) and U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) listen during a Hanukkah reception at the U.S. Capitol on December 17, 2024 in Washington, DC.
Anna Money Tree | Getty Images
WASHINGTON — Late Friday night, House Republican leaders were running out of time to avert a partial government shutdown in the wake of the president-elect’s election. Donald Trump He and his allies struck a compromise bill to fund the government until March.
The continuing resolution, unveiled late Tuesday, appeared early and appeared to require Democratic votes to pass in the narrowly divided House, after hardline conservatives balked at the price tag and several provisions of the bill, including the addition of lawmakers. salary.
But Trump’s formal objection The bill was introduced late Wednesday after billionaire Republican megadonors Musk Opposition to the bill continued throughout the day, gradually making it politically impossible for much of the House Republican conference to support it.
The public failure of the massively negotiated bill also leaves House Speaker Mike Johnson’s standing in the chamber in jeopardy. The Louisiana Republican insisted on including several major spending initiatives in the bill, in part to win the necessary Democratic support in the Senate that the bill needs to become law.
Rather than simply calling for lower prices, Trump surprised many Republicans on Wednesday by demanding that any bill to fund the government must raise the debt ceiling.
The debt ceiling has become a recurring and heated debate in Washington every few years, and it was one that Trump was keen to avoid at the start of his second term.
“Raising the debt ceiling is not a good thing, but we would rather do it under Biden’s watch,” Trump said in a statement Wednesday, announcing his opposition to Johnson’s continued resolution.
“If Democrats aren’t cooperating on the debt ceiling now, what makes anyone think they’re going to do that in June while we’re in office? Let’s have this debate now. We should pass a streamlined spending bill , this bill won’t give Chuck Schumer and the Democrats what they want.
This is a developing story, please check back for updates.