The U.S. government could face a shutdown within days after Donald Trump effectively derailed a bipartisan funding bill’s chances of passing through Congress.
On Wednesday, the president-elect sharply criticized an agreement reached between House Republicans and Democrats to keep the federal government funded beyond Friday. Trump urged his allies in Congress to reject what he called a “foolish” and “inept” compromise.
Following his remarks, leading Republicans abandoned the legislation. House Speaker Mike Johnson refrained from calling a vote on the measure, seemingly to avoid Trump’s ire. Steve Scalise, another senior House Republican, declared the bill dead later that evening. “There’s still a lot of negotiations and conversations going on, but there’s no new agreement,” Scalise told reporters in Washington.
The dramatic collapse of the bipartisan deal, just two days before the funding deadline, came after Trump posted on social media that the “only way” to reach a deal was with stop-gap funding “WITHOUT DEMOCRAT GIVEAWAYS combined with an increase in the debt ceiling.” He further emphasized, “Anything else is a betrayal of our country.”
The failure to reach a compromise raises the likelihood of a government shutdown before the weekend. Federal programs could grind to a halt, some workers would be furloughed, and pay for federal employees, including military personnel, would be suspended.
The White House responded sharply, accusing Republicans of “playing politics” at the expense of the American people. “President-elect Trump and vice president-elect [JD] Vance ordered Republicans to shut down the government . . . A deal is a deal. Republicans should keep their word,” said White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.
This funding crisis is the latest in a string of tumultuous years for Congress. Right-wing Republicans have repeatedly clashed with their own leadership, including a revolt that ousted then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy in 2023. With the House’s narrow Republican majority, Johnson will need Democratic support to pass any temporary funding measure, known as a continuing resolution.
The proposed stop-gap bill would have maintained the $6.75 trillion federal budget at current levels until March 14, giving Republicans control of Congress following their victory in last month’s general election. This funding supports a range of federal programs, including defense, regulatory agencies, national parks, and air travel safety.
However, Trump and his allies, including billionaire Elon Musk, opposed the bill, claiming it contained unnecessary spending “giveaways” to Democrats. Trump and vice president-elect JD Vance urged Republicans to “GET SMART and TOUGH” and to “CALL THEIR BLUFF” if Democrats threatened a shutdown.
On social media, Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, who are advising Trump on government spending cuts for his upcoming administration, lambasted the bill. Musk referred to supporters of the legislation as “pork-barrel politicians” and vowed that any lawmakers backing the bill “deserve to be voted out in two years.” Musk also took issue with a pay raise for politicians included in the measure.
Adding to the tensions, Trump demanded that any funding agreement include an increase in the U.S. debt ceiling, which limits how much the federal government can borrow. He warned that any Republican who “bring[s] the mess of the Debt Limit into the Trump Administration, rather than allowing it to take place in the Biden Administration . . . should, and will, be Primaried.” His statement implied he would support challengers in primary races against Republicans who defied him.
On Wednesday, Scalise acknowledged ongoing discussions about the debt limit’s role in the continuing resolution, but no resolution appeared imminent.
