On Monday, President Trump urged bipartisan members of the United States House of Representatives to work together to quickly approve the funding proposal that has already passed in the Senate, in order to avoid a government shutdown that could once again cause serious harm to the country.
Trump took to the social media platform “Truth Social” on Monday afternoon to express his efforts with Speaker Johnson to ensure the current funding agreement passed in the Senate last week is approved in the House and sent to his desk for immediate signing into law.
“We must reopen the government. I hope all Republicans and Democrats can support this bill with no delay and get it to my desk promptly,” Trump wrote.
He emphasized that no changes can be made at present and stressed the importance of genuine cooperation to address the issues at hand, stating that another prolonged, senseless, and destructive government shutdown would severely harm the nation – to the detriment of both Republicans and Democrats. “I hope everyone will vote – a vote in favor!”
As Trump made this post, the federal government had partially shut down since early Saturday morning, impacting major departments such as the Pentagon, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the Department of Homeland Security.
However, it is expected that this government shutdown is unlikely to last for an extended period, as the Senate overwhelmingly passed a funding measure last Friday, agreeing to fund all agencies except for the Department of Homeland Security.
For the Department of Homeland Security, the bill provides a two-week temporary funding measure, with legislation for full-year funding for the department stalled temporarily until both parties reach an agreement on the reform of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). This is in response to the shooting deaths of two American citizens in an ICE enforcement action in Minneapolis, which sparked widespread protests.
While the Senate timely passed the funding bill before the government ran out of operating funds, the House of Representatives is in recess. Therefore, a vote can only be held once all members return to the Capitol Hill.
House Speaker Mike Johnson stated on Sunday that he believed he had enough Republican votes to pass the bill at least by Tuesday to end the partial government shutdown.
During an appearance on the NBC show “Meet the Press,” Johnson mentioned that the impact of a major snowstorm from a week ago still lingers, posing challenges to travel in the southeastern United States and potentially causing delays for some members to return to the Capitol building for voting on Monday.