The U.S. government is on the brink of a shutdown as Congress failed to reach a deal on a short-term spending bill before the midnight deadline on Friday.
The Senate had passed a bipartisan bill on Tuesday that would have funded the government through November 17 and provided $12 billion for Ukraine’s war efforts and disaster relief. However, the House rejected the bill, as a group of hard-line Republicans demanded more spending cuts and opposed any aid to Ukraine.
The House then passed four separate appropriations bills that included further cuts to social programs, environmental protection, and foreign aid, but the Senate rejected them, calling them “dead on arrival”.
The impasse left both chambers in a stalemate, with no clear path to avoid a shutdown that would affect millions of federal workers and essential services.
President Joe Biden blamed the Republicans for the crisis, saying they were holding the government hostage over their ideological agenda.
“They are willing to risk the health and safety of the American people, the stability of our economy, and our national security over their obsession with cutting spending and undermining our foreign policy,” Biden said in a televised address.
He urged the Republicans to drop their demands and pass the Senate bill, which he said was a reasonable compromise that reflected the will of the American people.
The Republican leader in the House, Kevin McCarthy, accused Biden of being out of touch with reality and refusing to negotiate.
“The president is living in a fantasy world where he can spend trillions of dollars without any consequences,” McCarthy said. “He is ignoring the fact that we have a debt crisis, an inflation crisis, and a border crisis. He is the one who is shutting down the government, not us.”
McCarthy said the Republicans were willing to keep the government open, but only if Biden agreed to cut spending and stop supporting Ukraine.
“We are not asking for anything unreasonable. A fiscal responsibility and national security is what we are asking for. We are asking for what the American people want,” McCarthy said.
As the clock ticked down to midnight, there was no sign of a breakthrough in the negotiations. Both sides blamed each other for the looming shutdown, which would be the first since 2018 and the fourth in a decade.
The shutdown would affect about 800,000 federal employees, who would either be furloughed or work without pay. It would also disrupt many government services, such as national parks, museums, passport offices, veterans’ benefits, food inspections, and health research.
Some critical functions, such as defense, law enforcement, air traffic control, and social security payments, would continue to operate, but with reduced staff and resources.
The shutdown would also have negative impacts on the economy, as consumer confidence and business activity would suffer. According to some estimates, a shutdown could cost up to $6 billion per week in lost output and revenue.
The shutdown would also undermine U.S. credibility and leadership in the world, as it would signal a lack of political stability and consensus. It would especially hurt U.S. allies such as Ukraine, who rely on U.S. support and assistance in their conflict with Russia.
The shutdown could be avoided if Congress passed a stopgap measure to fund the government for a few days or weeks while negotiations continued. However, such a measure would require unanimous consent from all senators, which seemed unlikely given the deep divisions among them.
Alternatively, Biden could invoke emergency powers to keep the government running under extraordinary circumstances. However, such a move would be controversial and could face legal challenges from Republicans.
As of now, neither option seemed viable, leaving the U.S. government on the verge of a shutdown that could have serious consequences for the country and the world.
