The current shutdown will continue into next week after US senators failed to approve spending plans to reopen the federal government for the fourth time. Two different spending plans, one from the Republicans and one from the Democrats, fell short of the necessary 60 votes.
The White House stated Friday that if the shutdown continues, it will be faced with the “unenviable task” of mass layoffs to keep key government services running, which Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt referred to as “fiscal sanity” because both sides are at a standstill.
The White House has been in talks with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), but it remains unclear how many people would be laid off. Legislators from both parties have retreated on the primary issue of contention, which is healthcare. Democrats plan to capitalise on the stalemate to reverse the Trump administration’s changes to the Medicaid health program and ensure that health insurance subsidies for low-income individuals do not expire.
Democratic leaders have refuted the Republican accusation that Democrats are trying to shut down the government in order to offer healthcare to unauthorized immigrants. A Republican-led plan to fund the government received 54 votes in favor, 44 against, and two abstained.
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