Congress in deadlock as US on brink of shutdown, govt hopeful of averting crisis
Kevin McCarthy
The White House said on Friday (Sep 29) that it's still possible to avoid a government shutdown, as Republicans refused to support a bipartisan Senate proposal to keep the government open. The White House stated that it was up to Republican lawmakers to resolve the impasse.
"There is still a chance," Office of Management and Budget (OMB) director Shalanda Young told reporters at a briefing.
"I'm still remaining an optimist that we have a day and a half to work out, in one corner, what is needed to take the deal" that Republicans in the House of Representatives have been offered by the Senate for a stopgap, she added.
In the United States, lawmakers are racing against time to avert a federal government shutdown, after a number of hardline Republicans refused to endorse must-pass funding legislation unless major budget cuts were made.
When Congress fails to authorise discretionary expenditure for the upcoming fiscal year, which begins on October 1, the government shuts down.
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So far, Congress has struggled to reach a deal to keep agencies running, prevent national park closures, and avoid the suspension of salaries for federal employees and military staff.
As per an estimate by the White House,3.5 million federal workers will have to go without pay if the government shuts down - around twomillion of them will be military.
The closure, set to start after midnight Saturday (0400 GMT Sunday), would be the first since 2019 and appears increasingly inevitable.
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The two chambers of Congress are deadlocked, with a small group of hardline Republicans in the House of Representatives opposing any short-term fix that would at least keep the lights on.
House Republicans proposed a plan on Friday to extend funding until the beginning of November, but only if substantial budget cuts of around 30% were made across the board, with exceptions for defence and disaster relief.
President Joe Biden's administration said in a statement that he would veto this.
"They are breaking their word, abandoning the bipartisan deal that two-thirds of them voted for just four months ago," White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in another statement.
(With inputs from agencies)
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