This comes as Biden meets with Ukrainian President Zelensky in Washington later this week.
Washington:
The United States is less than two weeks away from a possible government shutdown, with the stakes rising as lawmakers struggle to agree on a short-term spending bill.
Several budget bills are currently being debated in Washington, but none have enough votes to pass both the Democratic-majority Senate and the Republican-controlled House of Representatives.
Lawmakers have until midnight on September 30 to reach a deal before funding for government services threatens to dry up.
Government shutdowns are jeopardizing the finances of hundreds of thousands of workers, who may be sent home without pay if parks, museums and other federal properties close.
While policymakers are generally eager to avoid this situation, some supporters of former President Donald Trump have opposed every bill on the table thus far.
“With less than two weeks before the end of the budget year, extreme Republicans in the House of Representatives are playing partisan games with people’s lives,” the White House said in a statement on Tuesday.
– Aid to Ukraine uncertain –
The standoff could have implications for the war in Ukraine, with the White House said to be pushing for a budget bill passed by lawmakers that would include $24 billion in military and humanitarian aid to Kiev.
While such a plan is supported by Democrats and Republicans in the Senate, it faces radical opposition from some members of the House of Representatives.
“I will not vote to fund one cent of the war in Ukraine, COVID-19 and the politically armed government,” far-right Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene said on X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter.
This comes as US President Joe Biden meets with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Washington later this week.
“At the same time that President Zelenskiy is coming to the United States to plead for firmness against (Russian President Vladimir Putin), Republican leaders in the House of Representatives are essentially telling him, ‘You’re on your own,’” Chuck said Schumer, Democratic Majority Leader in the Senate.
– Debt crisis in June –
The looming shutdown marks the second time in recent months that the world’s top economy has faced a financial impasse.
In June, the United States narrowly avoided potential debt default when U.S. senators voted to suspend the federal debt limit after weeks of difficult negotiations.
A bankruptcy would have been unprecedented, but the United States has had shutdown periods before, including a 35-day period from late 2018 to early 2019 under former President Donald Trump – the longest in US history.
A shutdown this time could “leave a visible mark on the economy,” EY chief economist Gregory Daco said this week.
He estimates that “each week of government shutdown will cost the US economy $6 billion,” and that GDP growth will decline by 0.1 percentage point in the fourth quarter.
“Beyond the direct macroeconomic consequences of a shutdown, confidence in financial markets and the private sector could also be affected,” he said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
