US government shutdown looms as standoff over border wall deepens
The standoff over Donald Trump’s $5bn wall funds has deepened, threatening a partial government shutdown.
Monday brought few signs of progress in solving a dispute between Republicans and Democrats over keeping the government open. A partial shutdown that could occur at midnight Friday risks disrupting government operations and leaving hundreds of thousands of federal employees furloughed or working without pay over the holiday season. Costs would probably be in the billions of dollars.
The president was meeting with his team and getting regular updates, said White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders. Trump was also tweeting Monday to keep up the pressure.
The president is insisting on $5bn for the wall along the southern border with Mexico, but he does not have the votes from the Republican-led Congress to support it. Democrats are offering to continue funding at current levels, $1.3bn.
It’s unclear how many House Republicans, with just a few weeks left in the majority before relinquishing power to House Democrats, will even show up mid-week for possible votes. Many say it is up to Trump and Democrats to cut a deal.
Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell opened the chamber Monday hoping for a “bipartisan collaborative spirit” that would enable Congress to finish its work.
Meanwhile, more than 800,000 government workers are preparing for the uncertainty ahead.
The dispute could affect nine of 15 cabinet-level departments and dozens of agencies, including the departments of homeland security, transportation, interior, agriculture, state and justice, as well as national parks and forests.
About half the workers would be forced to continue working without immediate pay. Others would be sent home. Congress often approves their pay retroactively, even if they were ordered to stay home.
“Our members are asking how they are supposed to pay for rent, food and gas if they are required to work without a paycheck,” said a statement from J David Cox Sr, president of the American Federation of Government Employees, the large federal worker union. “The holiday season makes these inquiries especially heart-wrenching.”
Many agencies, including the Pentagon and the departments of veterans affairs and health and human services, are already funded for the year and will continue to operate as usual, regardless of whether Congress and the president reach agreement this week.
Congress already approved funding this year for about 75% of the government’s discretionary account for the budget year that began 1 October.
The US Postal Service, busy delivering packages for the holiday season, wouldn’t be affected by any government shutdown because it’s an independent agency. Trump said last week he would be “proud” to have a shutdown to get Congress to approve a $5bn down payment to fulfill his campaign promise to build a border wall.
During his 2016 presidential campaign, Trump promised that Mexico would pay for the wall. Mexico has refused.
Democratic leaders Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi, in a meeting last week at the White House, suggested keeping funding at its current level, $1.3bn. Trump has neither accepted nor rejected the Democrats’ offer, telling them he would take a look.
“He is not going to get the wall in any form,” Schumer said Sunday on NBC’s Meet the Press. He said Republicans should join in the Democrats’ offer.
One option for lawmakers would be to provide stopgap funding for a few weeks, until the new Congress convenes 3 January, when Pelosi is poised to become House speaker.