Federal agencies will lose funding at midnight Friday
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said Wednesday that should a government shutdown occur, the blame would fall at the feet of Congressional Democrats who he says want to allow illegal immigrants into the country.
« It could happen, » Trump said, before adding that Democrats « want to have illegal immigrants pouring into our country bringing with them crime, tremendous amounts of crime. We don’t want to have that. We want to have a great, beautiful crime-free country. »
According to the Associated Press, federal agencies will lose funding at midnight Friday. However, a bill supported by Republican leaders would fund the government through Dec. 22, giving both Republicans and Democrats a chance to bargain while working toward a larger funding bill.
Democrats seek increased funding for health care, infrastructure and other domestic programs at the same levels that Republicans want for increased defense spending.
Democrats are also seeking to extend protections for hundreds of thousands of immigrants who arrived in the U. S. illegally as children, according to the AP. Trump however, does not see that as a benefit to the country.
While both sides are expected to meet Thursday regarding federal funding, Democrats have acknowledged that approving a short-term spending bill is of interest because it will give both sides time to negotiate without impact federal programs.
