Republicans and Democrats Agree to Avoid Government Shutdown

March 19, 2024 Hour: 1:12 pm

On Tuesday, leaders from both the Democratic and Republican parties in the U.S. Congress announced an agreement to fund the government for the remainder of fiscal year 2024.

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Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson and Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer disclosed the agreement, which allows President Joe Biden’s administration to avoid a partial shutdown due to lack of funds next Friday at midnight.

The main point of contention between the two parties was funding for the Homeland Security Department, as migration has become a significant issue in the electoral campaign of Donald Trump, the Republican candidate.

In a message on the social media platform X, Johnson indicated that the bipartisan agreement will allow progress in drafting the budget bill for fiscal year 2024, spanning from October 1, 2023, to September 30, 2024.

The US government continues to spend money like a drunken sailor w/ a budget deficit of $1.8 trillion. This is occurring when the economy is still in an expansion and home/stock prices are at record highs. What happens to the deficit when a recession hits? pic.twitter.com/73gf90QrfI

— Charlie Bilello (@charliebilello)
March 12, 2024

The drafting task now falls to committees in the Senate and the House of Representatives. Subsequently, the bill must be voted on by both chambers’ full membership.

Time is of the essence as a substantial portion of the administration will run out of funds by midnight on Friday. Both Johnson and Schumer agreed that the process must move swiftly to approve the text “as quickly as possible” and thus avoid a partial shutdown.

President Biden also noted that the House of Representatives and the Senate are now working to finalize a package that can be “swiftly” brought to the floor, promising to sign it “immediately” for it to take effect.

In early March, legislators already approved a US$460 billion funding package to avoid a government shutdown. They are now repeating the same process.

#FromTheSouth News Bits | In his State of the Union address, United States President Joe Biden focused on international policy, defending his administration in the face of perceived challenges from countries such as China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea. pic.twitter.com/kRBbcAyzft

— teleSUR English (@telesurenglish)
March 8, 2024