The threat of a US government shutdown surged on Friday, as the US Senate rejected a short-term funding bill to keep federal agencies operating after September 30 and then left town for a week-long break.
Advertisement
The lawmakers voted 44-48 to defeat a stopgap spending bill that would have kept federal agencies operating at current funding levels through November 21. The measure faced near-universal opposition from Democrats, who demanded increased healthcare funding.
Republicans said they could vote again on September 29, just a day before funding is due to expire, when senators return from a break.
Senate Republican Leader John Thune blamed Democrats for increasing the chances of a shutdown. “Eventually, it’s going to be an up-or-down vote on whether they want to keep the government open,” he said.
Democrats had demanded additional funding for healthcare subsidies under the Affordable Care Act and the restoration of funding cut from the Medicaid healthcare programme for lower-income Americans. But that effort failed 47-45.
Congress has struggled to pass spending legislation in recent years due to rising partisan tensions, repeatedly raising the threat of a shutdown that would leave government workers unpaid and a wide range of services disrupted.