On Wednesday, President Donald Trump sought to rally support for a continuing resolution (CR) to avert a partial shutdown of the federal government in less than two weeks, insisting that conservative lawmakers who tend to oppose stopgap bills will “love” this one.
“Government funding runs out next week, and Democrats are threatening to shut down the Government — But I am working with the GREAT House Republicans on a Continuing Resolution to fund the Government until September to give us some needed time to work on our Agenda,” Trump said in a post to Truth Social.
He added, “Conservatives will love this Bill, because it sets us up to cut Taxes and Spending in Reconciliation, all while effectively FREEZING Spending this year, and allowing us to continue our work to, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN. VERY IMPORTANT — Let’s get this Bill done!”
Trump was alluding to a resolution that narrowly passed through the House last week as part of the budget reconciliation process. That measure outlines fiscal priorities for future spending legislation in line with his domestic agenda priorities in areas such as national defense, border security, and tax cuts.
A partial government shutdown, in which non-essential federal employees will be furloughed while workers performing critical duties such as air traffic control or law enforcement will stay on the job without pay — at least in the short term, is set to begin on March 15 if a funding bill is not passed in time.
Some House Republicans have signaled or declared outright they would oppose the CR, indicating such a measure would need bipartisan support to get through the lower chamber. But Politico noted Trump “made progress” in courting GOP holdouts during a White House meeting on Wednesday.
“Who would want to stall President Trump and the American people’s agenda? Only Democrats have said they want to shut down the government,” House Republican Conference Chairwoman Lisa McClain (R-MI) said in a post to X. “Let’s pass the CR and keep working on the mandate.”
Elon Musk, who is leading the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) effort, met with congressional Republicans on Wednesday and told reporters afterwards that his message to them was that there is “a lot of opportunity to improve expenditures in the government.”
