Given the year that has passed, perhaps it’s only fitting that 2024 will end with a chaotic fight over government funding: After 12 months of upheaval and dysfunction, why not a frenzy? The ultimate mania for closed-door politics to resolve things?
As the country prepares to shut down on Friday, Republicans are starting to criticize. Donald TrumpPresident-elect helped destroy the Speaker’s bipartisan spending agreement Mike Johnson had hoped to get it through his chamber earlier in the week, blaming the current administration, posting on social media that “if the government is going to shut down, start it now.” He added: “This is a problem for Biden to solve.” Vice President-elect J.D. Vanceafter the failure Thursday night of the Trump-backed funding measure, blamed House Democrats, telling reporters they killed the bill to deny them “negotiating leverage.” Trump’s remarks during the first year of his term and to “fight global censorship bullshit.” ”: “They asked for a shutdown,” Vance speak of Democrats, “and I think that’s exactly what they’re going to get.”
But make no mistake: Whether lawmakers reach a deal by Friday night’s deadline or not, Republicans still own the chaos that has led us to this moment.
As of Tuesday night, Johnson had a plan to keep the government funded through the first two months of Trump’s presidency — a plan that, with Democratic support, could have surpassed is challenging Washington’s divisions. But on Wednesday, Elon Musk—the world’s richest man, one of Trump’s most influential advisers, and clearly a shadow president of sorts—destroy the continuing resolution with a non-stop, lie-filled posting marathon. House Republicans declared their opposition to Johnson’s bill, and by day’s end, Trump and Vance expressed their opposition — and began making demands of their own, including that the cap be removed. in debt. increase until 2029end of their term, or completely abolished. “It doesn’t make any sense, except psychologically,” Trump told NBC News about the debt limit.
Some of his members—38 of them, in fact—seemed to disagree and voted against the temporary measure: “It’s embarrassing,” Texas Congressman Chip Roy speak in a fiery speech, criticizing his party for supporting the debt-increasing bill. “What a shame.” That drew opposition from Trump, who called for a primary challenge to the Freedom Caucus congressman. Roy is “standing in the way, as usual, of another great Republican Victory—All for the sake of cheap publicity for himself,” Trump posted Thursday. “Republican obstructionists must be removed.”
Roy does not seem particularly worried about his political prospects at this time. Johnson’s, on the other hand, seems more precarious: If he wants to keep his job, he will need to be re-elected on January 3. The last time Republicans elected President, it takes 15 votes—and some significant concessions by Kevin McCarthy. Hard-core members of the conference overthrow McCarthy less than a year with the motion vacant, after the then-California congressman challenged his right wing in a fight for government funding. Sound familiar?
Some Republicans have already started imagine on handing the gavel to Musk, who insists that the government should shut down until Trump takes office: “We’ll be fine for 33 days,” he declared this week. Trump, when asked if he still had confidence in Johnson, made no commitment: “We’ll see,” he told NBC News.
But no matter how all of this plays out, one thing seems clear: This is a preview of the chaos that is to come when Trump assumes the presidency a month from now. “This,” as outgoing Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell put it“Next year it will be the same.”
