President-elect Trump, Musk Convince Republicans to Abandon Shutdown Deal as Clock Ticks
Federal employees are increasingly looking at a partial government shutdown just in time for Christmas, with the deadline to extend the federal government Friday night.
This after Congressional Republicans turned on Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), and voiced opposition to a negotiated bipartisan continuing resolution (CR), after being urged by President-elect Trump, Vice President-elect JD Vance, and billionaire Elon Musk to do so.
It started when Musk, the “first buddy” tapped by the president-elect to co-lead the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), started railing against the deal on X, the platform he owns, urging Congress not to pass legislation until President-elect Trump is sworn in. Musk then disparaged the compromise legislation with a slew of terms calling it the bill “terrible,” “criminal,” “outrageous,” and “horrible” among other words, and writing that any member of the House or Senate who votes for it “should be out in 2 years.”
Hours later, the president-elect jumped on the train, calling for Republicans to “get smart and tough.” He also demanded an increase in the debt ceiling while President Biden is still in office.
“The only way to do that is with a temporary funding bill WITHOUT DEMOCRAT GIVEAWAYS combined with an increase in the debt ceiling. Anything else is a betrayal of our country,” wrote President-elect Trump and Vice President-elect Vance in a statement.
The compromise CR also contained $100 billion for disaster relief and an additional $10 billion in economic aid for farmers. That left other Republicans still clamoring for passage in its initial form, especially from hard-hit states.
“I’ll use every tool available to block a CR that fails Western North Carolina communities in need of long-term certainty,” Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) said on X.
Still, the legislation is not dead, and Speaker Johnson could rely on Democratic votes to get it through. Although, satisfying priorities of the president-elect and getting Democrats on board is no easy task.
Nevertheless, House Appropriations Committee Member Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL) said ,“I think there’s a path forward.”
Shutdown Preparations
Should a shutdown occur, federal workers will not be paid. However, they will receive back pay once the shutdown is resolved.
Some analysts point out that shutdowns cost the government billions in lost revenue, pointing to lack of sales at gifts shops, lack of entrance fees at national parks, and the millions that accrue in back pay.
“We pay federal workers their regular salary in many cases not to deliver government services,” said Marc Goldwein, Senior Policy Director for the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.
The last three government shutdowns combined cost taxpayers nearly $4 billion, including at least $3.7 billion in back pay to furloughed workers and about $338 million in other fees including extra administrative work. That’s according to a 2019 report by a subcommittee of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.