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A deal to fund the US federal government is in doubt after Donald Trump urged his Republican allies in Congress to reject a "stupid" and "unworkable" deal struck with Democrats earlier this week.
The President-elect's broadside on Wednesday left the Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson There are only two days left before funding expires and federal authorities are forced to halt some programs and suspend payments to some workers.
"The only way to do that is with a temporary funding bill without Democrat giveaways with an increase in the debt ceiling." trump X said in a statement on Wednesday. "Anything else is a betrayal of our country."
Trump's intervention means Johnson, a close ally of the president-elect, must reject the current bilateral deal or risk Trump's ire by calling a vote in the House of Representatives to ratify it. is
The latest funding debate marks a tumultuous few years for Congress, where the right-wing the republican has repeatedly threatened his own leadership in the House, including a rebellion that ousted then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy in 2023.
With a narrow Republican majority in the House, any defection by Johnson from his own party would force him to rely on Democrats to pass a so-called continuing resolution to provide temporary funding to the federal government.
Hakeem Jeffries, the leader of the Democrats in the chamber, said: “House Republicans are ordered to shut down the government. And hurt the working class Americans they claim to support.
The funding bill would keep the roughly $6.75tn federal budget running at current levels until March 14, when Republicans will take control of Congress after last month's victory in the general election. The money continues a wide range of federal programs, including defense, regulators, national parks and air travel security.
But Trump and other allied Republicans, including billionaire Elon Musk, have criticized what they say is costing Democrats "claims" in Johnson's bipartisan bill.
Trump and his Vice President-elect JD Vance said in their statement that Republicans need to be "smart and tough," and that "if Democrats threaten to shut down the government unless we give them everything Call their bluff as long as we want them”.
Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy — who Trump has tasked with cutting government spending when he regains the White House next year — lashed out against the bill on social media on Wednesday, threatening that Musk " "pork-barrel politicians" who might support it.
"Any member of the House or Senate who votes for this outrageous spending bill is entitled to a vote in 2 years," Musk said in a post on his social media platform X.
He also called the bill "terrible", "criminal" and "a scam".
Congress has until the end of Friday to pass the 1,500-page bipartisan bill, which was only introduced on Tuesday.
Without funding, the government would freeze some programs and send home "non-essential" federal workers. Federal employees will stop receiving their paychecks, including those who serve in the military.
Although Social Security checks will still be mailed, some administrative matters may be delayed.
The bipartisan deal includes nearly $110 billion in disaster relief, $10 billion in economic aid for farmers, funding to replace a collapsed bridge in Maryland and pay raises for members of Congress.
Musk took exception to salary increases for politicians.
"How can it be called a 'continuing resolution' if it includes a 40% pay rise for Congress?"
Trump called for any funding deal to include an increase in the U.S. debt ceiling, a rule that limits how much money the federal government can borrow.
"The most foolish and incompetent thing congressional Republicans have ever done was allowing our country to hit the debt ceiling in 2025. That was a mistake and is something that must be addressed now," he and Vance said. said