Featured Image Credit: Getty Images/Andrew Harnik
Topics: Donald Trump, Politics, US News
Britt Jones
The US government might be on its way to shutting down next week, and if that happens, a few things will follow.
Because Republican and Democratic politicians haven’t agreed on a solid plan to fund the federal government after September 30 - when current funding expires - things are getting tricky.
The budget, used to fund many of the US Federal Government agencies which rely on annual funding approved by Congress, has not been accepted.
Republicans in the House of Representatives, and one Democrat, passed a short-term bill to keep the government funded until 20 November. However, Senate Democrats blocked the bill and now, they are back to square one.
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Every year, the agencies need to submit their funding requests, and once Congress passes it, the president should sign the budget legislation for the next fiscal year (1 October).
But instead, they proposed a plan that would restore healthcare funding after Trump passed his 'One, Big Beautiful Bill’ in July and then made cuts to Medicaid.
The bill failed to pass because when it comes to the Senate, a lot of major bills need around 60 votes to pass, but with only 53 Republican senators, they need Democratic votes to pass a government funding bill.
As both parties are at an impasse on their proposal, it’s likely a shutdown will occur until an agreement is made.
As of right now, the Republicans have proposed a bill to fund the government at current levels through November 21, and have asked for an increase in security for lawmakers after Charlie Kirk’s assassination.
As for the Democrats, their bill would fund the government through October 31, with a reversal of Medicaid cuts, and an extension of government subsidies that allow the Affordable Care Act to be supported.
"If it has to shut down, it'll have to shut down," Trump told reporters on Friday, blaming Democrats for the issue.
Calling the proposal ‘unserious and ridiculous’, as per the BBC, Trump is said to have cancelled his meeting with Democratic Party leaders Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries, writing online: "I have decided that no meeting with their Congressional Leaders could possibly be productive."
Now that the budget is soon to run out next week, federal employees have been threatened with a shutdown, to work without pay, and even mass layoffs.
If the shutdown happens, national parks and museums could close, and other government amenities could be suspended until further notice. Funding for programs funded through 'mandatory spending’ could be continued, including Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid.
As for the threats to employees, the White House has allegedly sent a memo which explains to its agencies to prepare for mass firings if Congress does not prevent a government shutdown next week, as per US media.
In the memo, the Office of Budget and Management say all federal agencies need to create a ‘reduction in force’ plan for which ever program needs funding if Congress doesn’t meet its 30 September deadline.
"We remain hopeful that Democrats in Congress will not trigger a shutdown and the steps outlined above will not be necessary," the memo allegedly states.
It also warns that people could be fired on projects and activities that have no other funding sources and are ‘not consistent with the President's priorities.’
To this, Democrats are calling it an intimidation tactic.
"Donald Trump has been firing federal workers since day one - not to govern, but to scare," said Schumer, the Democratic Senate minority leader, as per Business Insider. "This is nothing new and has nothing to do with funding the government."