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Topics: Donald Trump, US News, Politics
A US government shutdown could be imminent if a temporary funding bill fails to pass in Congress today (March 11).
That's right, as the trade war between the US and Canada intensifies, Americans could soon be dealing with yet another curveball.
While Donald Trump told reporters the shutdown 'probably won't' go ahead, it depends on the result of a vote on a 'continuing resolution' (CR) bill which goes ahead later today.
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Mike Johnson, Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, issued a short term spending bill in Congress in December to keep up government funding.
Johnson's bill, known as a continuing resolution (CR), covered funding up until Friday (March 14) - however, if another similar bill isn't passed before this one expires, the government could be forced into a shutdown, impacting federal workers and beyond.
The last shutdown - a record-breaking 35 day stint which ran from December 2018 into January 2019 - was also under Trump's administration, over his $5.7 billion federal fund demand to build his controversial US-Mexico border wall.
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Anyway, Republicans, who control the House, offered up a solution to the imminent issue on March 8 when they presented a CR bill which would keep the government topped up with cash for the rest of fiscal year 2025, which ends September 30.
However, there still needs to be a vote, which is set to take place today, in order for the CR to pass.
If no deal is struck by midnight, then the US will have its first shutdown in six years.
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The last, 35-day shutdown wreaked havoc on the US economy, costing at least $11 billion according to estimates from The Congressional Budget Office.
Some 380,000 federal workers were furloughed, while another 420,000 were required to work without any known payment dates.
The IRS faced delays in processing $140 billion worth of tax refunds, while the FBI saw some of its investigations majorly disrupted.
Airports had to be closed amid Transportation Security Administration staff shortages.
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A shutdown this week would have a ripple effect across the country, much like it did in 2019.
Services including in-hospital medical care, law enforcement, border protection and air-traffic control would carry on operating.
Other services, however, could be reduced or closed altogether, including the issuing of student loans, food assistance programmes federally-funded preschools and even national parks.
Benefit verifications and card issuance could stop, the BBC reports, but Social Security and Medicare cheques would continue to be sent out.
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'Essential' federal workers would continue as usual although potentially without pay, while those not deemed essential would be put on unpaid leave for the time being.
Of course, the longer the shutdown continues, the worse the effects, as Transport Security Administration spokesman Carter Langston warned: "An extended shutdown could mean longer wait times at airports."