House Speaker Mike Johnson, from left, President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance attend the NCAA college football game between Army and Navy at Northwest Stadium in Landover, Md., Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, from left, President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance attend the NCAA college football game between Army and Navy at Northwest Stadium in Landover, Md., Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024.
WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump may be sending the federal government into shutdown this weekend with a Wednesday evening tweet saying he doesn’t approve of the resolution House Speaker Mike Johnson negotiated to continue spending until March.
In a long message on X, Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance wrote that Congress should increase the debt ceiling, which allows the government to borrow more, on Democratic President Joe Biden’s watch and remove the additional provisions in Johnson’s resolution leaving only the part that would allow government spending to continue.
“We should pass a streamlined spending bill that doesn’t give Chuck Schumer and the Democrats everything they want,” Trump and Vance wrote.
“Republicans want to support our farmers, pay for disaster relief, and set our country up for success in 2025. 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,” Trump and Vance stated.
Johnson has said that he preferred a simple “continuing resolution,” but needed additional provisions to get enough Democratic votes to pass the continuing resolution and avoid a government shutdown.
The government will lose its authorization to spend at 12:01 a.m. Saturday unless legislation is passed.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, of New York, responded on X: “House Republicans have been ordered to shut down the government. And hurt the working-class Americans they claim to support. You break the bipartisan agreement, you own the consequences that follow.”
Neither Johnson, R-Benton, nor his No. 2, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-Jefferson, responded Wednesday night to requests for comment.
But Rep. Troy Carter of New Orleans, the only Democrat in Louisiana’s delegation, said Wednesday night that he is livid.
“We reached a bipartisan funding agreement. It’s time for House Republicans to do the right thing, stick to it, and act on behalf of everyday Americans,” Carter said. “By threatening to shut down the government, MAGA Republicans are betraying Louisiana farmers, veterans, disaster survivors, and seniors who rely on essential government programs to survive. House Republicans now have a choice — side with extremists or with working families.”
Johnson angered many right-wing Republicans with a 1,547-page continuing resolution, released Tuesday night, that included many demands from Democratic House members, such as an additional $10 billion to help farmers shore up their finances to the point that banks would lend them the money to plant crops, $100 billion to refill a depleted fund to help disaster victims recover, and a pay raise for lawmakers.
Johnson can afford to lose only three Republican votes in January when he stands for reelection as speaker of the House. National media, such as Politico and Punchbowl, report that several House Republicans are saying they won’t back his bid and are floating possible names as replacements.
Johnson won his position in October 2023 after right-wing Republicans orchestrated a coup to oust his predecessor, Kevin McCarthy, R-California. They were angered that McCarthy had negotiated with Democrats to find enough votes to avoid a previous shutdown.
Email Mark Ballard at mballard@theadvocate.com.
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