As US govt shuts down, Trump feuds with Democrats
No deal on funding for federal agencies Workers asked to stay home
Washington, Jan. 20: The world’s most powerful government shut down on Saturday after President Donald Trump and the US Congress failed to reach a deal on funding for federal agencies, highlighting America’s deep political divisions.
For the first time since October 2013 — when a similar standoff that lasted 16 days kept only essential agency operations running — federal workers were being told to stay at home or in some cases to work without pay until new funding is approved.
This is the first modern government shutdown with Congress and the White House controlled by the same party, and it comes on the one- year anniversary of President Trump’s inauguration.
Mr Trump’s inability to cut a deal despite having a Republican majority in both houses of Congress marks arguably the most debilitating setback for his administration.
Yet, Mr Trump immediately blamed Democrats for the shutdown which began after a bill to fund the federal government for the coming weeks did not receive the required 60 votes by the deadline of midnight on Friday. The vote was 50- 49 in the 100member chamber to vault the bill over a procedural hurdle.
Early on Saturday, Mr Trump tweeted, “This is the One Year Anniversary of my Presidency and the Democrats wanted to give me a nice present. Democrats are far more concerned with illegal immigrants than they are with our great military or safety at our dangerous southern border. They could have easily made a deal but decided to play shutdown politics instead.”
Mr Trump said the shutdown showed the need to win more Republican seats in 2018 mid- term polls.
“We can then be even tougher on Crime ( and Border), and even better to our Military & Veterans!” he said.
Without the deal, most day- to- day operations in the federal government will be disrupted. Hundreds of thousands of government employees will be put on temporary unpaid leave, including many of the White House’s 1,700 workers.
On Monday, government employees ranging from financial regulators and tax collectors to scientists and civilian staff at the Pentagon will have to stay away from work.
This is the One Year Anniversary of my Presidency and the Democrats wanted to give me a nice present. — Donald Trump,
US Prez
Washington, Jan. 20: US President Donald Trump marked the first anniversary of his inauguration on Saturday with his government in shutdown, accusing Democrats of taking Americans hostage with their demands.
From midnight Friday US time, in the absence of an agreed spending plan, federal services began to come to a halt or be scaled back, even as lawmakers continued to argue on the floor of the Senate.
Essential services and military activity will continue but many public sector workers will be sent home without wages and even serving soldiers will not be paid until a deal is reached to reopen the US government.
A deal had appeared likely earlier Friday, when Trump seemed to be close to an agreement with Democratic Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer on a measure to prevent the expulsion of undocumented migrants who arrived in the country as children.
But no such compromise was in the language that reached Congress for a stop- gap motion to keep the government open for four more weeks while a final arrangement is discussed — and Republicans failed to win enough Democratic support to bring it to a vote.
The White House lashed out at Schumer, blaming him for the shutdown and doubling down: Trump’s spokeswoman Sarah Sanders declared that he would never negotiate an immigration deal until Congress agrees to resume normal government spending.