The US government faces the risk of another partial shutdown as the budget deadline approaches, amid escalating political tensions within Congress over funding for the Department of Homeland Security, bringing back to the forefront fears of a federal government shutdown and its impact on the economy and markets.
The Senate is expected to vote in the coming days on a massive $1.2 trillion spending package, already approved by the House of Representatives, which includes funding for the Department of Homeland Security along with a wide range of government agencies, before the January 30 deadline.
However, the killing of an American citizen in Minnesota by federal agents, the second such incident this month, sparked a wave of objections within the Democratic Party, whose leaders threatened to reject the funding bill if the Department of Homeland Security clause remained included in the package.
This dispute brings to mind the longest government shutdown in US history, which lasted 43 days during the first year of President Donald Trump’s second term, as a result of a bitter conflict over immigration and government spending issues.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said the current Homeland Security funding bill is insufficient to curb abuses by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and that Democrats will not provide the votes needed to pass it.
The funding bill needs 60 votes to overcome the parliamentary deadlock in the Senate, where Republicans hold only 53 seats , making the package's passage contingent on the support of a number of Democrats.
The spending package, in addition to the Department of Homeland Security, includes funding for the Departments of Defense, Health, Labor, Transportation, Education, State, and Treasury, which further complicates the political landscape and makes it more difficult to separate the disputed items to avoid a shutdown.
With some voting sessions disrupted by a powerful snowstorm hitting Washington and large parts of the United States, the window of opportunity for Congress to reach a settlement is narrowing, increasing the likelihood of the US government entering another partial shutdown in the coming days.
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