President-elect Donald Trump Wednesday disrupted bipartisan efforts to avert a government shutdown as he pressured his fellow Republicans in Congress to reject a stopgap bill to keep the government funded past the end of the week.
Trump instead urged Congress to pass legislation that would tie up loose ends before he takes office next month by raising the government’s borrowing authority — a politically difficult task — and extending government funding. He also said lawmakers should strip out elements backed by Democrats, whose support would be necessary for passage.
Trump’s attempt to influence Congress more than a month before he takes office could complicate efforts to avert a shutdown that would disrupt everything from air travel to law enforcement in the days leading up to the Dec. 25 Christmas holiday.
He warned that Republicans who vote for the current legislative package could have trouble getting re-elected.
What closes, what stays open?
DOES THE MAIL GET DELIVERED IF THE GOVERNMENT CLOSES?
The U.S. Postal Service would be unaffected because it does not depend on Congress for funding.
WHAT HAPPENS TO SOCIAL SECURITY, MEDICARE AND OTHER BENEFITS?
The Social Security Administration would continue to issue retirement and disability benefits.
Payments would likewise continue under the Medicare and Medicaid healthcare programs.
Military veterans’ benefits and medical care would also continue.
Food benefits through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and other nutrition programs would continue, though they could be disrupted to some extent.
WHAT DOES A SHUTDOWN MEAN FOR THE MILITARY?
The 2 million U.S. military personnel would remain at their posts, but roughly half of the Pentagon’s 800,000 civilian employees would be furloughed — ordered not to work.
Contracts awarded before the shutdown would continue, and the Pentagon could place new orders for supplies or services needed to protect national security. Other new contracts, including renewals or extensions, would not be awarded.
Payments to defense contractors such as Boeing BA.N, Lockheed Martin LMT.N and RTX RTX.N, formerly known as Raytheon, could be delayed.
The Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration would continue maintaining nuclear weapons.
HOW DOES A GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN AFFECT LAW ENFORCEMENT?
Agents at the FBI, the Drug Enforcement Administration and other federal law enforcement agencies would remain on the job, and prison staffers would continue to work.
The Secret Service and the Coast Guard would also continue operations, and most employees would continue to work.
Most of the Federal Trade Commission’s consumer-protection workers would be furloughed, as would half of its antitrust employees.
WILL NATIONAL PARKS CLOSE DURING A SHUTDOWN?
National parks, monuments and other sites would be closed to the public, though it will be impossible to keep visitors out of many of them. Rangers would be furloughed and restrooms, help desks and other facilities would be shuttered.
Some states may use their own money to keep parks and other sites open, as happened in the 2018-2019 shutdown.
Wildfire fighting efforts would continue, though timber sales on national forest lands would be curtailed and fewer recreation permits would be issued.
WHAT HAPPENS TO BORDERS AND HOMELAND SECURITY?
Most Border Patrol and immigration enforcement agents would continue to work, as would most customs officers.
Local governments would not get new aid to shelter migrants.
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency would suspend security reviews that help schools, local governments and other institutions defend against ransomware.
WILL FEDERAL COURTS STILL BE OPEN DURING A SHUTDOWN?
Federal courts could operate for several weeks without congressional funding, relying on fees and other funds, but eventually would have to scale back activity. The Supreme Court would stay open as well.
Criminal prosecutions would continue. Most civil litigation would be postponed.
DOES CONGRESS STILL GET PAID?
Lawmakers would continue to collect paychecks, even as other federal workers do not. Staffers would not get paid, though those deemed essential would be required to work.
DOES A SHUTDOWN IMPACT TRANSPORTATION?
Airport security screeners and air-traffic-control workers would be required to work, according to recent contingency plans, though absenteeism could be a problem. Some airports had to suspend operations during a shutdown in 2019 when traffic controllers called in sick.
The Transportation Security Administration would not be able to hire new airport security screeners during the busy holiday travel season.
Some major infrastructure projects could face delays because environmental reviews and permitting would be disrupted, according to the White House.
WHAT’S THE IMPACT ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS?
U.S. embassies and consulates would remain open. Passport and visa processing would continue as long as there were sufficient fees to cover operations. Nonessential official travel, speeches and other events would be curtailed.
Some foreign aid programs could run out of money as well.
WOULD A SHUTDOWN DISRUPT SCIENCE?
Scientific research would be disrupted as agencies like the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation and the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration would furlough most of their workers once they run out of funding.
NASA would continue to support the International Space Station and track satellites, but 17,000 of its 18,300 employees would be furloughed.
Weather forecasts and fisheries regulation would continue, as would patent and trademark reviews.
The Federal Communications Commission would suspend consumer-protection activities, equipment reviews and licensing of TV and radio stations. It would continue to distribute telecommunications subsidies and its broadband mapping effort.
WHAT HAPPENS TO HEALTH PROGRAMS?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention would continue to monitor disease outbreaks, though other public health activities could suffer as more than half of the agency’s workers would be furloughed.
The National Institutes of Health would furlough most of its staff and delay new clinical trials for medical treatments.
Healthcare services for military veterans and Native Americans would continue.
Most inspections of hazardous waste sites and drinking water and chemical facilities would stop.
Food-safety inspections by the Food and Drug Administration could be delayed. However, the FDA’s testing of new drugs and medical devices would continue.
WHAT HAPPENS TO THE SEC AND FINANCIAL REGULATION?
The Securities and Exchange Commission would furlough roughly 90% of its 4,600 employees and suspend most activities, it said last year, leaving only a skeleton staff to respond to emergencies.
Likewise, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission would furlough almost all of its employees and cease most oversight activity.
The Federal Reserve, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency would continue as normal because they are funded by industry fees rather than congressional appropriations.
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, an industry-financed brokerage oversight body, would continue to operate.
The Treasury Department would continue to issue debt and manage the government’s cash position.
DOES A SHUTDOWN DELAY KEY ECONOMIC DATA?
The publication of major U.S. economic data, including employment and inflation reports of critical importance to policymakers and investors, would be suspended.
WILL THE IRS STAY OPEN DURING A SHUTDOWN?
The Internal Revenue Service would stop examining and auditing tax returns and responding to taxpayer queries. Automated tax collection would continue, as would processing of green-energy tax credits under the Inflation Reduction Act. Roughly two-thirds of the agency’s 90,000 employees would be furloughed.
DOES THE SHUTDOWN AFFECT EDUCATION?
Pell Grants and student loans would continue to be paid out, but could be disrupted as most Education Department employees would be furloughed.
A protracted shutdown could “severely curtail” aid to schools, universities and other educational institutions, the department said last year. It also could delay funds that are due to be awarded later in the year.
WHAT HAPPENS TO HEAD START AND CHILD CARE?
The White House said last year that 10,000 children from low-income families would lose access to the Head Start preschool program.
DOES A GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN AFFECT SMALL BUSINESSES?
The Small Business Administration would not be able to issue any new loans, though loans for businesses hurt by natural disasters would continue.
HOW DOES A SHUTDOWN AFFECT FARMERS?
Meat and egg inspections would continue, but some lab services would be disrupted, making it harder to fight animal diseases. Crop insurance would not be affected, but some loan programs would be. Research, conservation and rural development programs would be shut down.
DOES A SHUTDOWN AFFECT WORKPLACE SAFETY?
Workplace safety inspections would be limited, and investigations into unfair pay practices would be suspended.
The ability of the National Labor Relations Board to mediate labor disputes would be curtailed because almost all of its 1,200 employees would be furloughed, according to a 2022 plan.
HOW DOES A SHUTDOWN AFFECT HOUSING?
Monthly subsidies for public housing and low-income housing aid would be at risk. The Federal Housing Administration would continue to back insured mortgages, and Ginnie Mae would continue to back the secondary mortgage market. New homebuyers in rural areas would not be able to get loans from the Agriculture Department.
HOW WOULD A SHUTDOWN IMPACT THE WHITE HOUSE?
In the 2018-2019 shutdown, the White House furloughed 1,100 of 1,800 staff in the Executive Office of the President. Some offices, such as the National Security Council, continued at full strength, while others like the Office of Management and Budget were scaled back sharply.
The U.S. Constitution specifies that the president continues to get paid.
“Any Republican that would be so stupid as to do this should, and will, be Primaried,” Trump wrote on social media.
It would be the first government shutdown since one that extended through December 2018 into 2019, during Trump’s first four-year White House term.
Democrats currently hold a majority in the Senate, and Democratic President Joe Biden remains in power until Trump takes office on Jan. 20.
The current bill would fund government agencies at current levels and provide $100 billion for disaster relief and $10 billion in farm aid. It also includes a wide range of unrelated provisions, such as a pay raise for lawmakers and a crackdown on hidden hotel fees.
Trump said Congress should limit the bill to temporary spending and disaster relief and also raise the national debt ceiling now before it comes to a head next year.
“Unless the Democrats terminate or substantially extend the Debt Ceiling now, I will fight ’till the end,” Trump said on his Truth Social site.
Congress’s next steps were unclear. Bipartisan agreement will be needed to pass any spending bill through the House of Representatives, where Republicans currently have a 219-211 majority, and the Senate.
The stopgap measure is needed because Congress has failed to pass regular spending legislation for the fiscal year that began on Oct. 1. It does not cover benefit programs like Social Security, which continue automatically.
The U.S. government has spent more money than it has taken in for more than 20 years, as Democrats have expanded health programs and Republicans have cut taxes. An aging population is projected to push up the cost of retirement and health programs in the years to come.
Steadily mounting debt – currently $36 trillion – will force lawmakers to raise the debt ceiling at some point, either now or when borrowing authority runs out next year. Failure to act could shock bond markets with potentially severe economic consequences.
MUSK WADES IN
Trump’s comments came after his ally Elon Musk pressured Congress to reject the bill and said those who back it should be voted out of office.
The Tesla TSLA.O chief executive and world’s richest person, who spent more than $250 million to help Trump get elected, has been tasked by Trump to prune the federal budget.
Unless Congress acts, the federal government will run out of money to fund operations on Saturday. The deal reached on Tuesday would have extended funding through March 14.
House Republicans huddled in the office of Speaker Mike Johnson late Wednesday to determine their next move. Even before Trump and Musk weighed in, some on the party’s right flank had come out against the bill on the grounds that it spent too much money and included too many unrelated provisions.
“The Speaker tried to get the votes and the necessary votes weren’t there. And then we saw what happened on social media, and a lot of folks have, you know, had second thoughts. And so now we got to recalibrate,” Representative Kevin Hern told reporters outside Johnson’s office.
Republican Representative Mike Rogers said changes to the debt ceiling should not be included in the current negotiations.
“It’s complicated enough without that,” he told reporters. Democrats said Republicans had walked away from a bipartisan deal.
“House Republicans have been ordered to shut down the government and hurt everyday Americans all across this country,” House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said at a news conference. “House Republicans will now own any harm that is visited upon the American people that results from a government shutdown.”
Trump in the past has sometimes voiced support for government shutdowns, and the 2018-2019 one was the longest in U.S. history, lasting 34 days.
Musk has emerged as one of the biggest spenders in U.S. politics this year, and his threat could resonate with some Republicans. It likely carries less weight with Democrats who represent solidly liberal areas, or senators from both parties who will not be up for reelection for another six years. Musk tried and failed in November to influence the outcome of the Senate Republicans’ leadership contest.

A wide range of government services would be disrupted if Congress does not act before Saturday, including agencies like the Pentagon and NASA that do business with Musk’s companies.
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