Government shuts down after Congress fails to pass spending bill
The federal government partially shut down at midnight on Friday, hours after Congress failed to pass a spending bill that included $5 billion in funds for a wall on the southern border, New York Post reported.
As several federal agencies ceased operations, President Trump on Friday night continued to push for a wall on the border — and blamed Democrats for the standstill.
“We’re going to have a shutdown, there’s nothing we can do about that because we need the Democrats to give us their votes,” Trump said in a video that he posted on Twitter.
“Call it a Democrat shutdown; call it whatever you want. But we need their help to get this approved.”
But in a contentious oval office meeting with Democratic leaders last week, Trump vowed to take responsibility if a shutdown occurred.
“I am proud to shut down the government for border security,” Trump said during the meeting with Sen. Chuck Schumer and Rep. Nancy Pelosi.
Trump also vowed on Thursday not to vote for a spending bill that had passed the House of Representatives but did not include funding for the wall, paving the way for the midnight shutdown.
The standstill left the paychecks of hundreds of thousands of federal workers in limbo at Christmastime.
The House will reconvene on Saturday afternoon.
Via New York Post