Washington (TDI): The Republican-controlled US House of Representatives passed a bill on Friday that would avert a midnight government shutdown, defying President-elect Donald Trump’s demand to also green light trillions of dollars in new debt.
Next, the Democratic-controlled Senate would require to pass the legislation to ensure the government will be funded beyond midnight (0500GMT Saturday), when current funding expires.
The White House said President Joe Biden intends to ink it into law if they do.
The bill would extend government funding until March 14, provide 100 billion dollars for disaster-hit states and 10 billion dollars for farmers.
It would not raise the debt ceiling — a daunting task Trump has pushed Congress to do before he assumes office on January 20.
House Speaker Mike Johnson said Republicans would have more power to influence government spending in 2025, when they will have majorities in both houses of Congress and Trump will be in the White House.
Shutdown’s Effects
A government shutdown would disrupt everything from national parks to law enforcement and suspend paychecks for millions of federal workers.
A travel industry trade group warned that a shutdown could cost airlines, hotels and other companies 1 billion dollars per week and lead to massive disruptions during the busy Christmas season.
Authorities warned travelers could face long queues at airports.
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The legislation, which passed by a bipartisan vote of 366-34, resembled a cross-party plan that was abandoned earlier this week after an online fusillade from Donald Trump and his billionaire adviser Elon Musk, who said it contained too many unrelated provisions, such as a pay hike for legislators and a crackdown on pharmacy benefit managers.
Republicans struck most of those elements from the draft— including a provision limiting investments in China which Democrats argued would have conflicted with Musk’s interests.
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“He clearly does not want to answer queries about how much he plans to expand his businesses in China and how many US technologies he plans to sell,” Democratic Representative Rosa DeLauro said on the House floor.
Trump has tasked Musk with heading a budget-cutting task force, but the billionaire holds no official position in Washington.
