Trump says he hopes government shutdown ‘will not last long’
Operations for several key agencies cease in the early hours of Saturday as US House of Representatives adjourns without Congress passing a spending deal
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US President Donald Trump said Friday that he hopes the government shutdown — caused by a dispute over funding for his border wall project — will not be a lengthy one.
“The shutdown hopefully will not last long,” Trump said in a video post on his Twitter account.
The US House of Representatives adjourned Friday without Congress passing a spending deal, assuring a partial government shutdown at midnight as Trump and lawmakers remain at odds over border wall funding.
Operations for several key agencies ceased in the early hours of Saturday, despite last-ditch talks that continued on Capitol Hill between White House officials and congressional leaders in both parties.
Trump is seeking $5 billion for construction of a wall on the US border with Mexico. Democrats are staunchly opposed, and the absence of an elusive deal caused federal funds for dozens of agencies to lapse at midnight.
It remained unclear how long the shutdown will last. But the optics are bad, as hundreds of thousands of federal employees will be either furloughed or forced to work without pay in the run up to the Christmas holiday.
The House is due back in session at noon (1700 GMT) Saturday.
The Senate meanwhile remained open late Friday, but there were no signs of a breakthrough, and the chamber was quiet.
Senators told reporters that congressional leaders from both parties were negotiating behind the scenes with White House officials including Vice President Mike Pence, Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, and incoming chief of staff Mick Mulvaney.
One focus of discussion was the $1.6 billion in border security funding that was a part of pending Senate legislation, number two Senate Republican John Cornyn told AFP.
But conservatives in the House likely balked at that figure.
“There’s no agreement,” congressman Mark Meadows, chairman of the House Freedom Caucus of ultra-conservatives, told reporters as he made his way from Senate meetings to the House.
“There’s a whole lot of numbers being thrown around,” but a maximum $1.6 billion for border security “is not acceptable.”
Trump was scheduled to fly to Florida late Friday for his Christmas break, but the White House said the president postponed the trip and would remain in Washington in an effort to salvage a spending deal.
The Times of Israel Community.