The US government is drawing nearer to a potential shutdown after Donald Trump told Republicans on Friday “don’t even bother dealing with” the Democrats, whose congressional leaders are refusing to support spending bills that do not include their healthcare priorities.
Congress is up against an end-of-the-month deadline to approve legislation funding the federal government, otherwise many departments will stop work and employees will be told to stay home. While the Senate and House of Representatives have made some progress on passing the 12 appropriations bills that make up the budget, it seems certain that Congress will need to pass a short-term measure to keep the government open beyond 30 September.
