The United States is bracing for a “shutdown” on Friday, a paralysis of the federal government that now seems inevitable, unless there is a last-minute release in Congress, and that is expected to wreak havoc on the country.
Starting Sunday, the world’s largest economy should run slowly. Millions of civil servants will be deprived of their salaries, air traffic will be disrupted and visitors to national parks will find their doors closed.
In fact, as the deadline approaches, it seems increasingly unlikely that Democrats and Republicans will be able to overcome political blockages to reach a budget deal.
The “shutdown” is “completely avoidable, it is entirely in the hands of the Republicans in the House,” White House chief economist Lael Brainard told CNBC on Friday morning.
Aid to Ukraine, source of tensions
Almost a year before the presidential elections, both sides blame each other for this situation.
“I hope Democrats do not vote to put the state into a shutdown,” Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said during a Friday morning news conference.
At the center of this political blockage: the 2024 budget, which must be approved by the elected representatives of the Senate and House of Representatives for funds to continue being distributed.
In the Senate, a short-term budget proposal has the support of the vast majority of elected officials and would allow a few additional weeks to reach a final agreement.
But in the House of Representatives, a handful of Trumpist Republican elected officials refuse to lend their voice to any text that includes financial aid for Ukraine.
Unpaid civil servants
Republicans in the House have a rival text that does not allocate an envelope to kyiv, but frees up money for the fight against illegal immigration. Elected officials will vote on the proposal on Friday, Kevin McCarthy said.
The White House strongly opposes this bill and has indicated that Joe Biden will veto it, accusing “extremist Republicans” of leading the country toward a “shutdown,” “that will harm our economy and our national security.”
With less than 40 hours left until the deadline, the country is preparing for this closure of services. Authorities were notified Thursday of the imminent paralysis.
In fact, they will have to wait until the end of the “closure” to receive their salary. Some, considered “essential workers”, will however be seized and others will be prohibited from accessing their files and emails. The military will not be paid either.
Most of America’s famous national parks, such as Yosemite and Yellowstone, will close. Air traffic is also expected to be greatly affected.
And some food aid recipients could be temporarily denied.
“National security”
“Hundreds of small businesses would see their loan applications fail,” the White House also warned, and they would no longer be able to respond to calls for bids for public contracts, as they would be interrupted.
“It is critical that Congress act to approve fiscal year 2024 appropriations and support the Administration’s request for additional funds for Ukraine, global humanitarian needs, funds to help address the migration crisis and combat malicious actors, particularly in Africa,” a State Department spokesperson said. he also stood out on Friday.
“Delays in access to these funds endanger the national security of the United States and cede ground to China and Russia,” he warned.
The latest “shutdown” was the longest the United States had experienced. It lasted 35 days, between December 2018 and January 2019, with a blockade around, this time, the financing of the wall on the border with Mexico sought by former President Donald Trump.
Source: BFM TV
