Congress in disarray and shutdown as Trump and Musk clash over spending deal

The US could face a government shutdown at midnight on Saturday after President-elect Donald Trump urged Republican lawmakers to reject a bipartisan funding bill that would have kept the government funded until March.

Trump called on Congress to scrap the deal and pass a slimmer version with fewer provisions. His intervention followed fierce criticism of the bill by tech billionaire Elon Musk.

Congressman Steve Scalise, the Republican majority leader in the House of Representatives, said Wednesday night that the bill was not working after Trump denounced it.

A short-term funding bill must be passed by Congress by the end of the week to avert a shutdown of federal government agencies starting Saturday.

Republican leadership must now go back to the drawing board, and they only have until 11:59 p.m. EDT (04:59 GMT) to reach a deal before funding expires and the government shuts down.

The government shutdown will cause federal agencies — from the National Park Service to the Border Patrol — to scale back and begin shutting down operations this weekend.

Trump and Vice President-elect J. D. Vance delivered the latest blow to House Speaker Mike Johnson’s bipartisan funding bill Wednesday night after a pressure campaign led by Mr. Musk on X.

Mr. Musk, whom Trump has tasked with cutting government spending in his incoming administration, lobbied hard against the existing deal on Wednesday, repeatedly speaking out against the bill, often with false claims.

The president-elect and vice president are pushing for streamlined legislation that does not include the Democratic-backed provisions that Johnson negotiated with his colleagues across the aisle.

The now-dead bipartisan deal would have extended government funding through March 14 — months after Trump’s return to the White House.

The law is needed because Congress has never passed a budget for fiscal year 2025, which began on Oct. 1. Instead, lawmakers decided to pass a short-term funding extension through Dec. 20.

In a joint statement, they also called on Congress to raise the debt ceiling, which determines how much the government can borrow to pay bills, and limit funding legislation to temporary spending and disaster relief.

“Republicans want to support our farmers, pay for disaster relief, and set our country up for success in 2025. The only way to do this is with a temporary funding bill WITHOUT DEMOCRATIC DISTRIBUTION combined with an increase in the debt ceiling,” the statement said. to read

They called everything else “treason to our country.”

In posts on his social media site Truth Social, Trump threatened to oust “any Republican who would be stupid enough to” vote for the current version of the bill, which was introduced on Tuesday.

“If Democrats threaten to shut down the government if we don’t give them everything they want, then CALL THEIR BLUFFS,” he said.

Johnson’s 1,500-page permanent resolution included more than $110 billion (£88 billion) in emergency aid and $30 billion (£23 billion) to help farmers. It also included the first pay raise for lawmakers since 2009, federal funds to rebuild a bridge that collapsed in Baltimore, health care reforms and provisions aimed at preventing deceptive advertising in hotels and live event venues.

It is unclear how Johnson plans to proceed. The two parties will meet on Thursday to decide the way forward for their party.

Democrats are unlikely to help Johnson support a new funding bill, accusing it of violating their bipartisan agreement.

“You are breaking a bipartisan agreement, you are responsible for the consequences,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries wrote on X.

White House press secretary Karin Jean-Pierre issued a statement after Trump opposed the bill, saying, “Republicans must stop playing politics with this bipartisan deal or they will hurt hardworking Americans and create instability across the country.” .

“Initiating a damaging government shutdown will hurt families,” President Joe Biden’s spokeswoman continued, adding, “A deal is a deal. Republicans must keep their word.”

In the past five decades, there have been 21 shutdowns or partial shutdowns of the US government – the longest of which was during Trump’s first term, when the government was shut down for 35 days.