On September 21, 2021, Republicans in Congress blocked a government funding bill. Named the “stopgap bill”, this bill worked to increase the U.S. government’s debt limit and provide extra government funding. Funds were going to be spent towards providing resources and supporting Afghan refugees, fund all government agencies until December 3, and extend the debt limit until the end of 2022. After passing the Democratic-controlled House, the bill needed 60 votes in the Senate to pass. However, Democrats control 50 seats in the Senate and the majority of Republicans opposing the bill, resulting in a 48-50 vote. This vote has pressured Congress into turmoil because federal funds are projected to run out on Thursday, September 30. If Congress doesn’t pass any sort of resolution, the government would be placed on a partial shutdown. A government shutdown would not only negatively impact the economy, but would temporarily furlough thousands of government workers which would be detrimental to many American families.
Democrats overall supported this bill because it allows them to continue funding government programs fostered by the Biden administration. However, Republicans are in sharp opposition towards this bill because they didn’t want to give Democrats increased room for spending. Understanding the looming government shutdown, Republicans including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell have expressed that they’re willing to reframe the Stopgap Bill to a form in which Republicans will support it. According to a New York Times article, “Republicans vowed to support a nearly identical temporary spending package without an increase in the debt ceiling”. Republicans are targeting Democrats because they’re attempting to raise their spending limit by incorporating it in a bill that is supposed to supply funding for emergency aid. Republican Senator from Louisiana Bill Cassidy claims “It was pretty cynical of Senator Schumer to attach relief for disaster victims to something that he knew wasn’t going to pass — leveraging their pain, leveraging their pain for something that he can do quite easily”, furthermore illustrating the polarizing views of the Stopgap Bill between the two parties. Since the Democrats need to capture at least 10 votes from the Republicans to pass this bill, one option they may opt to is drafting a new temporary bill that only consists of sections of the Stopgap Bill that both parties can agree to, such as supplying funding to federal programs. As a result, the Senate can update the amount of government spending, and major government programs can continue to function. However, Democrats are fighting back claiming Republicans ought to support them and raise their spending limit because they increased the spending limit for Republicans under the Trump administration.
Considering the time constraint that congress is facing, I think it’s best that Republican members of Congress reach a compromise with Democrats and enact any sort of bill that will refill the national debt limit in order to prevent a government shutdown. Although Republicans and Democrats are clashing about many of the contents in the bill such as how much it should be raised and how the funds should be spent, it’s imperative to avoid a shutdown because if one occurs, it will furlough thousands of government workers across the country, placing them into economic hardship. In addition, many government services would be temporarily shutdown because there would be no employees working including: NOAA, the National National Science Foundation, and the U.S. Geological Survey.
Due to conflicts regarding the Stopgap Bill, an article by CNN claims Democrats in the Senate may be pressured to pass a “short-term funding bill with GOP support, then approve a debt limit suspension on their own — potentially as part of their up to $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation plan”. On Wednesday, September 29, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announced the Senate would have a final vote on Thursday, September 30 again on the Stopgap bill, hoping Republicans would comply and a government shutdown would be avoided.
In addition, the Democrats in Congress are feeling pressured by this bill because they also need to work on updating and increasing the limit on federal borrowing which is expected to be reached by mid-October. This would result in complications for the Biden administration and Congress because it would halt funding for numerous of their programs.
Questions:
Do you think that Congress will be able to come to a resolution?
Should the national debt limit be raised?
Sources:
https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/27/politics/senate-debt-limit-shutdown-vote/index.html
2 comments:
Before the events that occurred on September 30th, I was optimistic, since I thought that Congress will be able to come to a resolution, at least under this type of pressure. After all, government shutdowns are good for nobody (except for politicians and people who oppose the current administration, though even then nobody is getting paid so it's not an overall win). I am glad to say that I was correct; Congress passed the bill, which gives them a little more time. However, while this was a small victory and allows the government to stay afloat for a little while longer, it isn't a permanent solution. This should definitely be a high priority for Congress!
Congress has passed a short term solution, but the financial padding provided by that is set to expire in the beginning of December. So the clock is again ticking for the Democrats and Republicans in the Senate to reach a realistic compromise. This seems like a very pressing issue considering it involves so many American lives as you have mentioned, and it really demonstrates how the polarization of parties has in some ways become a threat to the nation. Democrats attaching Afghan refugee relief to the bill and Republicans being reluctant to allocate any funding do democratic agendas are both examples of manipulation of the other party based on morality and ideology. Being that both parties do agree on federal funding initiatives, finding some sort of middle ground is possible, but I think the argument over the debt ceiling is going to be challenging. Neither party will give in on that agenda easily, but since the temporary bill expires at the beginning of December, some resolution is going to have to be met.
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