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The deal to keep the US federal government open is in doubt after Donald Trump urged his Republican allies in Congress to reject a “foolish” and “incompetent” funding settlement reached with Democrats.
Criticism of the president-elect left the Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives on Wednesday Mike Johnson It is scrambling to reach a new agreement just two days before funding expires and federal authorities are forced to halt some programs and suspend payments to some employees.
“The only way to do that is through a stopgap funding bill without Democratic giveaways coupled with an increase in the debt ceiling.” Trump he said in a statement on X on Wednesday. “Anything else is a betrayal of our country.”
Trump's intervention means that Johnson, a close ally of the president-elect, must scrap the current bipartisan agreement or risk angering Trump by calling a vote in the House of Representatives to approve it.
The White House called on Republicans to “stop playing politics” or risk hurting Americans and causing instability. “President-elect Trump and Vice President-elect (J.D.) Vance ordered Republicans to shut down the government. . . A deal is a deal. “Republicans must keep their word,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said.
The latest debate over funding caps a turbulent few years for Congress, which is right-wing Republicans They have repeatedly threatened their leadership in the House, including the insurrection that ousted then-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in 2023.
With a narrow Republican majority in the House, any defections from Johnson's party would force him to rely on Democrats to pass a so-called continuing resolution to provide temporary funding for the federal government.
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said: “House Republicans have been ordered to shut down the government. They are hurting the American working class they claim to support.”
The funding bill would keep the roughly $6.75 trillion federal budget at current levels until March 14, when Republicans will take control of Congress after last month's general election victory. These funds keep a wide range of federal programs running, including defense programs, regulatory agencies, national parks, and air travel safety.
But Trump and other allied Republicans, including billionaire Elon Musk, have criticized what they say is “giveaway” spending to Democrats in Johnson's bill, which has bipartisan support.
Trump and Vance said in their statement that Republicans need to “be smart and tough,” and “if Democrats threaten to shut down the government unless we give them everything they want, they need to call the bluff.”
Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy — whom Trump has tasked with cutting government spending when he reclaims the White House next year — protested against the bill on social media on Wednesday, threatening what Musk called “idiot politicians” who might support it.
“Any member of the House or Senate who votes for this obscene spending bill deserves to be voted on in two years,” Musk said in one of his posts on his social media platform X.
He also called the bill “terrible,” “criminal,” and “fraud.”
Congress has until the end of Friday to pass the 1,500-page bipartisan bill, which was only introduced on Tuesday.
Without the funding, the government will cut some programs and send “non-essential” federal workers home. Federal employees, including those serving in the military, will stop receiving their salaries.
While Social Security checks will continue to be mailed, some administrative matters may be delayed.
The bipartisan deal includes about $110 billion in disaster relief, $10 billion in economic aid for farmers, funding to replace a collapsed bridge in Maryland and boost salaries for members of Congress.
Musk objected to increasing salaries for politicians.
“How can this be called a ‘continuing resolution’ if it includes a 40% increase in Congressional pay?”
Trump also called for any financing deal to include an increase in the US debt ceiling, a rule that governs how much money the federal government can borrow.
“The most foolish and incompetent thing Republicans in Congress have ever done is allow our country to reach the debt ceiling in 2025. It was a mistake and now it is something that must be addressed,” he and Vance said.
