On Wednesday morning, the government stopped working due to a heated dispute between President Trump and the Democrats in Congress over spending, leading to disruptions in federal services and sending many federal employees on leave.
This was the first federal shutdown since 2019, when part of the government was closed for 35 days due to a standoff between Democrats in Congress and Trump over the president's demand for funding a wall on the southern border.
This time, the dispute is related to the Democrats' demand that the president agree to extend expiring healthcare subsidies and restore full Medicaid funding, which was cut in the summer as part of Trump's tax reduction and domestic policy law.
As The New York Times writes, during two consecutive Senate votes that reflected how fierce the funding dispute has become, each party blocked the other side's temporary spending proposal, as at the beginning of the month.
«The far-left base of the Democrats and far-left senators demanded a showdown with the president», — said Senator John Thune, a Republican from South Dakota and majority leader. «And the Democratic leaders went along with their demands. And, apparently, the American people just have to suffer the consequences».
The Democrats stated that they are determined to continue the standoff until the Republicans concede to their demands, which include extending Obamacare subsidies that expire at the end of the year, as well as reversing Medicaid cuts and other healthcare programs that Republicans included in the tax reduction law. As NYT writes, if Obamacare tax credits are canceled, it is predicted that next year about four million people will lose health insurance, and prices will rise for another 20 million people.
«If the president were smart, he would do everything possible to immediately resolve this healthcare crisis because Americans will hold him responsible when they start paying 400, 500, 600 dollars more per month for their health insurance», — said Senator Chuck Schumer, a Democrat from New York and minority leader.
Donald Trump stated that during the government shutdown, he will take measures that will be «bad» for the Democrats and «irreversible for them», such as «cutting a huge number of people, cutting what they like, cutting programs they like». Later in the Oval Office, he said that «the government shutdown can bring a lot of good», including firing federal employees who are Democrats and undermining initiatives they support.
Photo: The New York Times