We May Be a Month Away From Republicans Shutting Down a Government They Control
The U.S. has roughly one month until the government runs out of money, and the talks to avoid that are a mess, writes Philip Elliott.
time.com
“… What almost everyone is missing: This country has roughly one month until the government runs out of money, and things like
paychecks to troops,
food-inspection programs,
disaster-reliefpayments, and
aid to low-income families could all be caught up in a chaotic game of chicken.
Republicans could keep the lights on all on their own, but probably won’t.
“They control the House, the Senate and the presidency. It’s their government,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries told reporters last week, setting up a blame-game preamble. Jeffries is factually correct.
Even still, Republicans may end up needing a bailout from Democratic lawmakers before March 14. That gives Democrats their first real leverage in Trump’s second term, but it’s entirely unclear if they will use it or to what end. While a unified plan has yet to emerge, wisps of fight-ready ambitions are starting to move from the fringes to the mainstream, albeit more slowly than most rank-and-file Democrats would like.
… All the
signs are here. The White House says it is charging forward despite federal judges
tellingofficials to, at a minimum, pump the brakes. Whether it actually upends the United States’ system of checks and balances in the coming weeks will shape the budget negotiations.
If Trump and Elon Musk continue to treat the spending laws already passed by Congress as mere suggestions, there won’t be much faith that the next spending bills will bind Trump’s team to actually following the orders from Capitol Hill.
… For Democrats in particular, this all makes it harder for them to consider helping Trump’s party look responsible enough to keep the government functioning at the most basic level. …”
