POLITICS NEWS – Government shutdown narrowly avoided five days before Christmas holidays

Laila Kirkpatrick, Staff Writer

On Thursday night, the House decisively rejected Donald Trump’s government funding proposal, which aimed to suspend the debt ceiling but risked further increasing the national debt. All Democrats and dozens of Republicans voted against the plan, preventing it from reaching the two-thirds majority required for passage.

With the Friday night deadline looming, the risk of a government shutdown grew more imminent. However, House Speaker Mike Johnson remains optimistic that the House will reach an agreement in time. The plan’s failure marks a significant setback for Trump and his allies, including Elon Musk.

Despite Speaker Johnson’s efforts to broker a bipartisan compromise, Trump’s opposition to the current spending plan has deepened the divide between parties. This deadlock was seen as a preview of the partisan challenges likely to escalate during Trump’s presidency. Fortunately, a spending bill was narrowly approved at midnight Friday to avert a shutdown during the holidays.