Update (December 23, 2018): According to the latest reports, the federal government may remain shut down well into January.
The Senate will return Thursday giving some experts hope a temporary measure would be passed to keep the government running. Negotiations regarding President Donald Trump's $5.7 billion border wall are unlikely to result in a fruitful resolution for Republicans.
The Associated Press reports 380,000 federal employees will be furloughed or forced to stay home without pay, and approximately 420,000 will have to work without pay. There is Senate legislation promising workers will receive back pay. It is very likely the House will pass similar legislation, The AP notes.
CBS News reports 25 percent of the federal government will not receive funding and will remain closed due to that lack of funding. Tourist sites, national parks and other federally funded institutions are set to be closed. Since Republicans gained control of both the Senate and House in 2013, this will be the fourth shutdown in the past five years.
Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), House Speaker-designate, spoke to members of her caucus Saturday about the shutdown, confirming reports it could last for several days before an agreement is reached.
"Until President Trump can publicly commit to a bipartisan resolution, there will be no agreement before January when the new House Democratic Majority will swiftly pass legislation to re-open government," she wrote to her caucus. "Please be assured you will be made aware of any developments to re-open government in the days ahead."
Original: Thousands of federal employees and various government agencies have been affected by the partial government shutdown caused by the partisan debate over President Donald Trump's border wall.
According to The Washington Post, the shutdown ended funding for parks, homeland security, law enforcement, tax collection and transportation. There are nearly 400,000 workers affected, and many of them will go home without pay.
Trump's border wall, which was promised early in the 2016 presidential campaign, was the bone of contention. Democrats adamantly rejected proposals to fund the wall. The Post reports a spending bill allocating $5.7 billion for the border wall was not passed in the House as negotiations fell through late Friday night.
By 8:30 p.m., the House and Senate adjourned leaving the door wide open for a prolonged shutdown. In a video on Twitter, Trump spoke late Friday about the closure.
“We’re going to have a shutdown,” he stated. “There’s nothing we can do about that because we need the Democrats to give us their votes … Let’s be bipartisan, and let’s get it done. The shutdown hopefully will not last long.”
OUR GREAT COUNTRY MUST HAVE BORDER SECURITY! pic.twitter.com/ZGcYygMf3a
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 22, 2018
The video was followed by others blaming Democrats for the shutdown, despite the president taking credit for it in a previous conversation with House Speaker-Designate Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY). Pelosi reminded people of this via her Twitter feed.
Trump's words: “I am proud to shut down the government.”
In other words, he's “proud” to harm our economy and Americans' paychecks — “proud” to cause hard-working families misery right before the holidays. #TrumpShutdown
pic.twitter.com/wxDq3ZFsjM— Nancy Pelosi (@TeamPelosi) December 21, 2018
USA Today notes House Democrats are waiting until their majority takes control on January 3. Any effort to fund the wall will be furthered delayed.
“President Trump, you will not get your wall,” Schumer said earlier this week. “You’re not getting your wall today, next week or on Jan. 3 when Democrats take control of the House.”
One of the most disastrous effects of the shutdown is the lapse of the Violence Against Women Act. The act was passed in 1994 in the wake of the Anita Hill hearings.
According to Roll Call, the act lapsed before in 2011 but received funding for the following fiscal year. However, this time may be different. Bills passed earlier this year delayed the lapse, but now those bills will have no effect.
The Violence Against Women Act expired this morning with the #TrumpShutdown. https://t.co/Ncixmwiw4h
— Keith Boykin (@keithboykin) December 22, 2018
Without funding, programs such as social service agencies helping victims of sexual violence, rape crisis centers, shelters and legal assistance programs will not be available for those who need them.
Some programs may continue unaffected, but the majority may not, Roll Call notes. If the shutdown continues into the next year, the average person will be affected.
Members of Congress have remained in D.C. to try to hammer out a deal before Christmas.
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