Donald Trump attacks bipartisan bill to keep US government open past Friday

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A deal to keep the US federal government funded is in doubt after Donald Trump urged his Republican allies in Congress to reject the “stupid” and “unnecessary” compromise reached with Democrats earlier this week.

The president-elect’s broadside left the Republican speaker of the House of Representatives on Wednesday. Mike Johnson are scrambling for a new deal with just two days left before funding expires, and the federal government has been forced to halt some programs and stop paying some employees.

“The only way to do that is through a temporary funding bill with NO DEMOCRATIC PATTERNS coupled with a debt ceiling raise.” Trump “Anything else is treason against our country,” X said in a statement on Wednesday.

Trump’s intervention means Johnson, a close ally of the president-elect, must scrap the existing bipartisan deal or risk Trump’s ire by calling a House vote to approve it.

The latest funding debate has been a tumultuous few years for Congress, with a right-leaning edge Republicans they have repeatedly threatened their leadership in the House of Representatives, including a rebellion that ousted then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy in 2023.

With a narrow Republican majority in the House of Representatives, any departure from Johnson’s own party would force him to rely on Democrats to pass a so-called continuing resolution to provide temporary funding to the federal government.

House Democrats leader Hakeem Jeffries said. “House Republicans have been ordered to shut down the government. And hurt the working class Americans they claim to support.”

The funding bill would keep the roughly $6.75 trillion federal budget at current levels until March 14, when Republicans take control of Congress after winning last month’s general election. The money maintains a wide range of federal programs, including defense, regulatory agencies, national parks and air travel. safety.

But Trump and other Republican allies, including billionaire Elon Musk, have criticized what they say are spending “donations” to Democrats in Johnson’s bipartisan bill.

Trump and his newly elected vice president J.

Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, whom Trump has tasked with cutting government spending when he takes over the White House next year, lashed out on social media on Wednesday against the bill and threatened what Musk called “pork barrel politicians” who might support it.

“Any member of the House or Senate who votes for this outrageous spending bill deserves a vote in 2 years,” Musk said in a post 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 introduced only on Tuesday.

Without funding, the government would cut some programs and send home “non-essential” federal workers, including those who serve in the military.

Although Social Security checks will still be mailed, some administrative matters may be delayed.

The bipartisan deal includes nearly $110 billion in disaster relief, $10 billion in economic aid for farmers, funding to replace a collapsed bridge in Maryland and pay raises for members of Congress.

Musk took exception to the salary increase of politicians.

“How can this be called a ‘continuation resolution’ if it includes a 40% pay raise for Congress?”

Trump has also called for any funding deal to include raising the U.S. debt ceiling, the rule that governs how much money the federal government can borrow.

“The dumbest and dumbest thing congressional Republicans ever did was to let our country hit the debt ceiling in 2025. That was a mistake, and it’s something that needs to be addressed now,” he and Vance said.