White House prepares for shutdown as GOP lawmakers struggle for an alternative
Erica Werner, Damian Paletta, Lisa Rein
Evan Vucci/AP In this Dec. 11, 2018, photo, President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence meet with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington.
The White House and a number of federal agencies have started advanced preparations for a partial government shutdown, as President Trump and congressional Democrats appear unlikely to resolve their fight over a border wall before some government funding lapses at week’s end.
GOP leaders are scrambling to find a short-term alternative that could stave off a shutdown, which would start on Dec. 22 absent a deal. But White House officials signaled to lawmakers Friday that they would probably not support a one- or two-week stopgap measure. Some congressional Republicans support such a “continuing resolution,” but the White House rejection has dramatically increased the odds of a spending lapse.
“We could be headed down the road to nowhere,” said Senate Appropriations Chairman Richard C. Shelby (R-Ala.). “We’ll have a [continuing resolution] rather than a shutdown, I hope.”
]Subscribe to the Post Most newsletter: Today’s most popular stories on The Washington Post
Several budget experts believe a partial shutdown, which would impact agencies that manage law enforcement, homeland security, housing and other programs, could drag on for days, if not weeks. That is in part because Trump believes the final days of the existing Congress are his best chance to extract $5 billion in funds to partially build a wall along the Mexico border. In early January, Democrats take control of the House of Representatives, giving them more control over the process.
Multiple agencies and senior administration officials are preparing for the possibility that about a quarter of the government — and more than one-third of federal workers — could be left without funding.
The agencies themselves are providing scant information about what they will do if their funding lapses, and with the deadline days away, mass confusion remains about what would actually happen in a partial government shutdown.
The Statue of Liberty, for example, closed to thousands of visitors during a brief government funding lapse in January. National parks across the country stayed open, though without visitor centers and fees and with only minimal emergency staff.
National Park Service officials confirmed Friday that parks would stay open this time — but they declined to say whether the Statue of Liberty would again close.
“We are not going to speculate on any possible change in government operations,” Jerry Willis, a spokesman for the national park that encompasses the Statue of Liberty, wrote in a text message. He referred questions to the Park Service, where another spokesman wrote an identical message in response to an inquiry.
The lack of clarity on all fronts is seizing Washington just ahead of the Christmas holiday and as Democrats prepare to take control of the House of Representatives, illustrating how jarring the transition in power could be next year.
Trump and some of his conservative allies on Capitol Hill view this as their last, best chance to deliver on the long-promised wall before they lose their grip on power, and they are reluctant to let the moment pass. But Democrats feel no pressure to give in to Trump’s demands weeks before they will assume control of the House.
At the same time, a number of Republicans are cringing at the possibility that their two years in control of Congress and the White House could end, shamefully, in a partial shutdown of the government they command. From the sidelines, rank-and-file Republicans are urging Trump and Democratic leaders to find a compromise between Trump’s demands for $5 billion for his border wall — even though he long claimed Mexico would pay for it — and Democrats’ insistence that they will spend no more than $1.3 billion on fencing.
“I’m sorry that we’re in this situation, because the American people deserve better from both sides,” said Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.). “Everybody that’s at the leadership level, and I include the president and the Democrats, are putting their perceived political interests ahead of a solution, and ahead of what’s good for the American people. And, you know, no wonder people don’t like this place.”
The standoff intensified following an outlandish televised meeting on Tuesday with Trump, Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). During their encounter, the president and his Democratic antagonists doubled down on their demands, and Trump declared he would be proud to shut down the government over border security.
There have not been any serious bipartisan talks since.
About 75 percent of the portion of the federal budget controlled by Congress has been funded through next September, including the Pentagon, Veterans Affairs and the Health and Human Services Department.
But the other 25 percent is operating on a short-term funding extension that runs out Friday at midnight. Unless a deal is reached, the departments of the Interior, Agriculture, State, Housing and Urban Development, Treasury, Commerce, and Homeland Security would lose funding. So would numerous smaller, independent agencies, including the Peace Corps, the Small Business Administration, the National Archives, the Environmental Protection Agency and the General Services Administration.
These agencies’ budgets were supposed to have been approved by last October.
About 800,000 of the 2.1 million federal employees across the country would be affected since their offices would lose funding to operate. About 40 percent of them would be sent home without pay, with the rest staying on the job because their work is considered essential to the functioning of the government, according to Capitol Hill aides and the contingency plans the agencies have filed with the Office of Management and Budget.
Federal agencies that will run out of funding were supposed to be notified Friday to begin activating their contingency plans. The plan provides the contours of what a partial shutdown would look like, even as the administration has issued little in the way of public guidance.
One reason for the confusion is that White House budget director Mick Mulvaney has given federal agencies much more leeway to remain open during a shutdown than his predecessors did. For example, he has directed national parks to remain open as they did during the brief shutdown last January, although visitor centers would be closed because their staffs would be sent home, and law enforcement would be minimal. Some agencies, such as the Environmental Protection Agency, have been directed to draw on reserve funding to keep employees at work instead of sending them home indefinitely without pay.
It is unclear if the White House will follow a similar approach this time, as multiple officials declined to comment. And Trump on Friday announced Mulvaney would be elevated to serve as acting chief of staff when the current chief, John F. Kelly, steps down at year’s end.
A partial government shutdown could portend bigger problems for Washington into 2019, as upcoming deadlines will repeatedly require Trump and Democrats to reach deals.
Capital Economics, a research firm, wrote in a note Friday that “the biggest downside risk (to the economy) is a prolonged federal government shutdown that morphs into a full-blown debt crisis sometime in the first half of next year.”
The White House and Congress will have to reach an agreement to raise or suspend the debt ceiling at some point next year, and Trump has not yet had to do this at a time when Democrats had any control over a chamber of Congress. Financial markets can become very unsettled when Washington dithers over raising the debt ceiling, and Trump had — before becoming president — suggested that the debt ceiling should not be raised.
Even a partial shutdown would cost taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars in lost productivity, with federal employees likely to be paid for staying home. Other shutdown-related expenses would include revenue from fees and costs charged contractors for stop-work orders, for example.
In light of the potential for a shutdown, some Republicans have begun downplaying its impacts, suggesting that even if it did occur the public might hardly notice.
“Obviously we want to avoid a government shutdown, but if you look at what the real-world consequences would be, I think this shutdown would be different because we have funded most of the government, because President Trump has said he will make sure essential services continue,” said Rep. Richard Hudson (R-N.C.). “I don’t think the American people will feel an impact from this like they may have in the past. I also think that the most important thing is we’ve got to secure our Southern border because we have a national security crisis down there.
Employees who are called to work during a shutdown do get paid but not until the government reopens.
Employees who are furloughed are in theory not guaranteed to be paid once the government reopens. But after every previous shutdown, Congress has passed legislation mandating that they be paid.
The Department of Homeland Security would keep 85 percent of its 300,000 employees on the job, largely because they perform law and immigration enforcement roles that are considered essential during a shutdown. So airport security screeners, the Coast Guard, Border Patrol agents, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents would come to work, although their pay could be delayed.
But the vast majority of Housing and Urban Development’s 7,800 employees would be furloughed, as well as those at NASA.
So would the workforce of the Treasury Department, which includes the Internal Revenue Service. In the short term, the effect on the IRS would be minimal since tax season is four months away — but the agency is preparing to fully implement the complex tax legislation Congress passed last year.
The Food and Drug Administration would continue to respond to outbreaks of the flu or foodborne illnesses, but would send home more than 40 percent of its staff and would have to cease routine inspections. But most food inspection, for example of meat-processing plants, is done by the Agriculture Department, which would continue those operations in a shutdown.
About 3,600 forecasters for the National Weather Service would stay on the job, as would 5,000 Forest Service firefighters and 16,700 federal corrections officers.
But would-be homeowners would find delays as their applications for loans were backlogged by the closing of the Federal Housing Administration.
With many federal workers planning to be off the job anyway to use up their annual vacation time, the impact of a shutdown on them could be blunted.
Unions representing federal employees said Friday, though, that even a partial shutdown would cause significant disruptions to the operations of government.
J. David Cox, president of the American Federation of Government Employees, the largest federal employee union, said it was wrong to minimize a potential shutdown because it would not affect the entire government.
“Picking and choosing certain agencies to stay open and leaving others to close is missing the point,” he said in a statement. “The federal government and its agencies are interconnected, the services funded by taxpayers are rightfully expected to be delivered year-round.”
http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/white-house-prepares-for-shutdown-as-gop-lawmakers-struggle-for-an-alternative/ar-BBR0tT7?li=BBnb7Kz&ocid=U453DHP
Today at 7:52 am by Rocky
» utube 3/28/24 MM&C Iraqi Dinar - IQD Update - SWIFT - Purchasing Power - Urban Renaissance - Releas
Today at 7:51 am by Rocky
» Al-Mandalawi: Iraq is witnessing competition between major companies...and the House of Representati
Today at 7:49 am by Rocky
» The President of the Republic stresses the importance of the role of programmers in developing the w
Today at 7:46 am by Rocky
» The Minister of Industry and Minerals follows up on the technical and production performance of the
Today at 7:45 am by Rocky
» The Minister of Finance is following up on the field the progress of the newly implemented ASYCUDA s
Today at 7:44 am by Rocky
» Statistics: There are more than 15 million bank accounts in Iraq
Today at 7:42 am by Rocky
» Representative: One paragraph hinders the passage of a general amnesty within the House of Represent
Today at 7:37 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary Finance: “The draft federal budget law will be devoid of new job grades.”
Today at 7:36 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary action to resolve the fate of “food security contracts” in 15 governorates
Today at 7:35 am by Rocky
» 300 factories turned into "iron scrap" in Diyala
Today at 7:34 am by Rocky
» A deputy expects the dollar exchange rate to reach 140 Iraqi dinars
Today at 7:32 am by Rocky
» Al-Yasiri: The American administration is working hard to destroy the Iraqi economy
Today at 7:31 am by Rocky
» Infographic: The highest annual salaries of leaders of Arab countries
Today at 7:30 am by Rocky
» Communications announces that the electronic signature project has reached advanced stages
Today at 7:29 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary Integrity presents a file related to Kuwaiti violations of Iraqi oil
Today at 7:27 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary move to include amendments to Parliament’s internal regulations on the agenda (documen
Today at 7:25 am by Rocky
» The Iraqi President urges the Minister of Finance to expedite the payment of salaries to the Kurdist
Today at 7:23 am by Rocky
» Central Bank of Iraq sales exceeded $251 million at today’s auction
Today at 7:21 am by Rocky
» The Foreign Minister questions the "Iraqi resistance" attacks against Israel: the other side did not
Today at 7:20 am by Rocky
» The Minister of Labor announces progress in the electronic payment system
Today at 7:17 am by Rocky
» Interior Ministry: For the first time, we controlled the smuggling of petroleum derivatives by 98 pe
Today at 7:16 am by Rocky
» International companies offer offers to invest in the Dhi Qar marshes.. What distinguishes them?
Today at 7:15 am by Rocky
» “Tough” comments on interest rates raise the dollar globally
Today at 7:14 am by Rocky
» Iraq is the fifth largest oil supplier to South Korea in a month
Today at 7:12 am by Rocky
» Recovering more than 100 billion as a result of more than 200,000 employees on social welfare
Today at 7:11 am by Rocky
» The Sudanese consultant announces the completion of Baghdad Metro track designs
Today at 7:08 am by Rocky
» Al-Sudani stresses ending the problem of triple-shift schools
Today at 7:07 am by Rocky
» Iraq begins building two new tankers to transport petroleum products
Today at 7:06 am by Rocky
» Forming a council for “competition and preventing monopoly”
Today at 7:04 am by Rocky
» Features of an Iraqi-Turkish agreement regarding the status of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party
Today at 7:02 am by Rocky
» {Al-Buzrajiya} between the hammer of fraud and the power of the owners
Today at 7:01 am by Rocky
» Ministry of Oil: The gas sector is witnessing great development
Today at 6:59 am by Rocky
» An agreement with Britain in the field of securities
Today at 6:58 am by Rocky
» Discussions between Baghdad and Ankara to open a new port
Today at 6:57 am by Rocky
» Trade: About 11 million citizens updated their new card information
Today at 6:56 am by Rocky
» Electronic payment is sustainable growth
Today at 6:55 am by Rocky
» Experts: Iraq qualifies to be an important tourist country
Today at 6:54 am by Rocky
» Amending the Health Professions Law “robs” scientists of the central appointment 3 years after it wa
Today at 5:20 am by Rocky
» Is the “blessings package” that Erbil paid to the citizens of Kurdistan related to the elections?
Today at 5:19 am by Rocky
» Exceeded 5,000 projects.. Allocating 10 trillion dinars to support governorate reconstruction plans
Today at 5:18 am by Rocky
» “His need no longer exists.” Parliamentary Finance confirms the necessity of returning the retiremen
Today at 5:17 am by Rocky
» To communicate with the bases... 12 directives from Al-Sadr, including blocking numbers for non-gove
Today at 5:15 am by Rocky
» In an interview with "Baghdad Today"... an Iranian researcher reveals the importance of Haniyeh's vi
Today at 5:14 am by Rocky
» After it was 63 trillion in 2023... the 2024 budget deficit will rise to 80 trillion dinars
Today at 5:13 am by Rocky
» Parliament reveals the date of the first evaluation of the governors and determines the party respon
Today at 5:11 am by Rocky
» The President of the Republic informs Al-Araji and Al-Basri: Momentum must be mobilized to eliminate
Today at 5:10 am by Rocky
» Can the Federal Court sue others? A legal clarification of its response mechanism to abuse
Today at 5:09 am by Rocky
» Despite promises to soon stop burning gas.. What is the secret behind Iraq renewing the Iranian gas
Today at 5:07 am by Rocky
» Advisor to Al-Sudani: The dollar is on the way to further decline, and 70% of Iraqi traders have ent
Today at 5:06 am by Rocky
» Iraq exported more than 99 million barrels of oil last February
Today at 5:04 am by Rocky
» Barzani “gives good news” to Kurdistan employees: salaries, land, and loan exemptions
Today at 5:03 am by Rocky
» Alia Nassif: Nour Zuhair returned to the port of Umm Qasr to make deals.. An influential Shiite forc
Today at 5:02 am by Rocky
» The Prime Minister announces the movement of nearly 500 stalled projects
Today at 5:00 am by Rocky
» A government strategy to enhance investments.. Iraq is on the verge of a new era of economic develop
Today at 4:59 am by Rocky
» Ranging between 20% and 50%.. The Kurdistan government decides to reduce service fees, customs dutie
Today at 4:58 am by Rocky
» Al-Sudani: The reform approach in the security services is an integral part of reform in other secto
Today at 4:56 am by Rocky
» Everyone in Iraq wants the Sudanese visit to Washington to be successful, even the factions!
Today at 4:55 am by Rocky
» Sources and experts expect the agenda.. in his bag is the Baghdad dollar and the factions’ truce, bu
Today at 4:54 am by Rocky
» The decision to raise gasoline prices arouses the ire of drivers...a reminder of the large demonstra
Today at 4:53 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary services: 3 important hospitals in Baghdad will enter service at the end of the year
Today at 4:52 am by Rocky
» Iraq signs a contract to supply Iranian gas for a period of five years
Today at 4:50 am by Rocky
» Parliament adds a voting paragraph on amending the Penal Code to its agenda
Today at 4:49 am by Rocky
» His political advisor: We are not afraid of Sudanese entering the elections alone
Today at 4:48 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary services explain the reasons for the rise in real estate prices in Baghdad
Today at 4:46 am by Rocky
» Attia, criticizing the government's decisions: "The citizen's feathers will be ruffled without servi
Today at 4:45 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary Communications: Zain Iraq and Asiacell did not pay their debts
Today at 4:44 am by Rocky
» The Governor of Karbala announces the imminent establishment of the largest industrial city in the c
Today at 4:43 am by Rocky
» A government determination to end the issue of displaced persons in the middle of this year
Today at 4:42 am by Rocky
» Iraq buys gas from Kurdistan to generate electricity
Today at 4:41 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary signatures to include an amendment to the internal regulations to decide the choice of
Today at 4:40 am by Rocky
» In Basra.. a demonstration against foreign workers in Iraqi companies (video)
Today at 4:38 am by Rocky
» Al-Samarrai: Presidency of Parliament is an entitlement to the constituents, and calling it a “frame
Today at 4:36 am by Rocky
» Electronic food supplies in 6 governorates... covering 11 million Iraqis and “writing off” about 700
Today at 4:34 am by Rocky
» Corruption of the Ministry of Transport.. Representatives express their surprise at the minister’s s
Today at 4:32 am by Rocky
» The biggest supporter of the invasion of Iraq.. The death of former US Senator Joe Lieberman
Today at 4:31 am by Rocky
» Iraq is ranked “late.” A list of the most and least safe Arab countries for women
Today at 4:30 am by Rocky
» The Council of Ministers exempts the Gulf Interconnection Authority from guarantee fees: it is a gov
Yesterday at 7:48 am by Rocky
» The Iraqi government raises the size of the 2024 budget, and Parliament is “surprised”
Yesterday at 7:46 am by Rocky
» Popular Movement: We have many economic options away from American hegemony
Yesterday at 7:42 am by Rocky
» The Oil Parliament stresses the need to transfer part of the revenues to the producing governorates
Yesterday at 7:41 am by Rocky
» It will cover 14 regions in eastern Iraq.. A deputy reveals the “border electricity” project
Yesterday at 7:40 am by Rocky
» Experts Warn Mass Migration Threatens US Food Security
Yesterday at 7:37 am by Bama Diva
» Al-Fateh: America occupies Iraq through agreements
Yesterday at 7:37 am by Rocky
» Anger in Iraq over a "sudden decision"... and a reminder of a "general strike" that paralyzed the co
Yesterday at 7:34 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary Committee: Parliament is discussing today a decision that “disturbed” the Iraqis
Yesterday at 7:33 am by Rocky
» Ministry of Electricity: Our production will reach 27 thousand megawatts by May
Yesterday at 7:31 am by Rocky
» Diagnosing the “most important” problems in the oil file between Baghdad and Erbil.. What is the rel
Yesterday at 7:30 am by Rocky
» The Iraqi Fiqh Academy and the Sunni Endowment issue a fatwa to pay Zakat al-Fitr
Yesterday at 7:28 am by Rocky
» The National Bank of Iraq continues its digital transformation by launching its new banking system a
Yesterday at 7:26 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary Investment and the Central Bank are discussing the housing initiative
Yesterday at 7:25 am by Rocky
» The Prime Minister announces the restart of 500 suspended projects
Yesterday at 7:23 am by Rocky
» Al-Barti assesses the region's employees: Your salaries are insured and will be paid after resettlem
Yesterday at 7:21 am by Rocky
» Iraqi-American discussions in anticipation of the Sudanese visit
Yesterday at 7:20 am by Rocky
» Iraq and Turkey hold meetings in Ankara to discuss technical issues related to the development road
Yesterday at 7:17 am by Rocky
» A government parliamentary agreement to support budget revenues and governorate allocations for inve
Yesterday at 7:16 am by Rocky
» Oil: The gas sector is witnessing great development
Yesterday at 7:15 am by Rocky
» A Kurdish-French agreement to develop trade and economic relations
Yesterday at 7:13 am by Rocky
» Exchange companies in Mosul demand that they be entered into the currency selling window
Yesterday at 7:12 am by Rocky