WASHINGTON, DC – SEPTEMBER 10: Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) speaks during a news conference following a House Republican Conference meeting at the U.S. Capitol on September 10, 2024 in Washington, DC. House Speaker Mike Johnson’s plan to extend government funding for six months that includes the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act (SAVE Act), which requires voters to provide documentary proof of citizenship at the time of registration, is facing opposition from key Republicans, jeopardizing its chances as concerns about military readiness and fiscal impacts begin to surface. (Photo by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)
President-elect Donald Trump abruptly rejected a bipartisan plan Wednesday to prevent a Christmastime government shutdown, instead telling House Speaker Mike Johnson and Republicans to essentially renegotiate — days before a deadline when federal funding runs out.Trump’s sudden entrance into the debate and new demands sent Congress spiraling as lawmakers are trying to wrap up work and head home for the holidays. It left Johnson scrambling late into the night at the Capitol trying to engineer a new plan before Friday’s deadline to keep government open.
“Republicans must GET SMART and TOUGH,” Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance said in a statement.
The president-elect made an almost unrealistic proposal that combined some continuation of government funds along with a much more controversial provision to raise the nation’s debt limit — something his own party routinely rejects. “Anything else is a betrayal of our country,” they wrote.
