Government shutdown news: Trump will not declare national emergency 'right now' as Pelosi says he must make next move over impasse
Furloughed public sector staff bear brunt of current impasse in Washington as up to 800,000 go without pay
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Thousands of federal workers missed their first pay cheque of the year on Friday as the US government shutdown neared an ignominious record for the longest in the nation’s history.
More than 800,000 public sector staff are either furloughed or have been working without any guarantee of pay since the current impasse began on 22 December.
Donald Trump had threatened to declare a national emergency to bypass congress and force through the spending plan at the centre of the dispute, which includes $5.7bn (£4.5bn) funding for the president’s controversial border wall contested by Democrats. But on Friday, the president said he would not declare on "right now".
The government shutdown will become the longest in US history on Saturday, surpassing the 21-day deadlock seen between December 1995 and January 1996 during Bill Clinton’s presidency.
“The easy solution is for me to call a national emergency. I could do that very quickly,” Mr Trump said during a White House event on border security. “I have the absolute right to do it. But I'm not going to do it so fast. Because this is something Congress should do.”
Mr Trump spoke after legislators had left Washington for the weekend, precluding any possible action until next week.
House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi said President Trump needs to make the next move to end the impasses.
Who could be running against Trump in 2020?
Show all 23“When the president acts, we will respond to whatever he does,” Ms Pelosi told reporters at a ceremonial event following congressional passage of legislation guaranteeing that federal employees will receive back pay once government agencies reopen.
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The president has tweeted for the first time on Friday, expanding on comments he made yesterday in relation to funding for his border wall plan.
“We have just signed a great new Trade Deal with Mexico,” he writes. “It is Billions of Dollars a year better than the very bad NAFTA deal which it replaces. The difference pays for Wall many times over!”
Mr Trump had made various claims in the past that Mexico would pay directly for the wall, although this latest tweet appears to reiterate his comments yesterday that the wall would be funded through more indirect channels.
Shutdown ‘threatening low-income families with eviction’
1,100 HUD contracts may expire during the shutdown (NLIHC)Hundreds of low-income families living in rental accommodation across the United States are being put at risk of eviction by the government shutdown, according to research by a campaign group.
The National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) has warned that without a funding package, more than 1,100 US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) contracts to provide project-based rental assistance housing will expire between December 2018 and Feburary 2019.
Without a federal funding deal, HUD has no means with which to renew or replace the contracts.
NLIHC says private landlords with government contracts have been advised to use their own funding reserves to cover losses while the shutdown continues.
However, the organisation warned tenants risk being evicted if the situation continues, as the option of waiting for a resolution becomes untenable for landlords.
Interesting piece by The Washington Post examines what furloughed federal workers across the US have been doing with their extended period off work.
Although some have are trying to pass the time with baking or hikes, many are conscious the shutdown could have potentially serious financial implications for them and their families.
Veterans’ group: ‘Trump should end this tomorrow’
The Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA), a nonpartisan organisation supporting American veterans of the two conflicts, has urged Donald Trump and congress to “fix this mess” and end the “harmful” government shutdown.
IAVA said a third of federal workers are veterans, including 150,000 who had been affected by the shutdown. Large numbers of veterans work in uniformed services such as the Coast Guard and the US Public Health Service.
“This shutdown is terrible for America, terrible for our national security and especially terrible for our nation’s veterans. It must end immediately,” said IAVA founder Paul Rieckhoff.
“Thousands of veterans have answered the call from their government to continue to serve as civilians, and now, they and their families are being recklessly left out in the cold.
“The president can end this tomorrow. And he should. As our Commander-in-Chief, we need him to prioritise our needs above politics.
“Now and always. IAVA members nationwide are standing guard to protect and support the American people. They shouldn’t have to worry about whether or not their next paycheck will be coming. The impact on our community has been devastating.”
Shutdown forces closure of Miami airport terminal
Miami International Airport (Getty)Miami International Airport says it is partially closing one of its terminals this weekend because security screeners have been calling in sick at twice the airport’s normal rate during the government shutdown.
Airport spokesman, Greg Chin, said there had been concerns over whether enough staff would show up in order to handle all 11 checkpoints at Terminal G.
The terminal will close at 1pm on Saturday, reopen for flights briefly on Sunday morning, before closing again at 1pm that afternoon.
Terminal G serves United Airlines along with smaller carriers. Its closure means restaurants and shops that depend on departing flights also will close.
Many airports across the US have reported high numbers of Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers calling in sick during the shutdown.
TSA airport security staff are deemed essential government employees, meaning they are still expected to work during the dispute despite having no concrete guarantees they will receive back pay.
Jenniffer Gonzalez, Puerto Rico's representative in congress says it is “unacceptable” for Donald Trump to consider siphoning off billions of dollars slated for disaster relief in the US territory for his proposed border wall.
A congressional official said Thursday the White House has directed the Army Corps of Engineers to look for billions of dollars earmarked last year for disaster response for Puerto Rico and other areas that could be diverted to a border wall.
The president is considering declaring a national emergency over what he has described as a “crisis” on the US border with Mexico, in order to bypass congress and secure funding for the project.
“While the president has broad military authorities, as the Commander in Chief, when it comes to declaring a national emergency, I cannot and will not support reallocating funding we approved in a bipartisan effort in congress for the recovery and reconstruction of Puerto Rico,” Ms Gonzalez said in a statement.
“We haven’t received the funding after more than a year and using this as a political football is not what the American citizens in Puerto Rico deserve.”
To add to the chaos in Washington, it appears that snow may be on the way over the weekend, understandably leading to concern federal workers will not be on hand to ensure the US capital does not grind to a standstill.
However, disaster may have been averted - a National Park Service spokesman has told The Washington Post federal workers will be deployed in the event of snow to clear nearly 300 miles of roadways and 100 miles of pavement across the city.
Donald Trump says he is planning changes including a possible pathway to US citizenship for foreigners holding H-1B visas.
The visa is issued temporarily to highly-educated immigrants who work in speciality occupations such as technology or medicine.
“H1-B holders in the United States can rest assured that changes are soon coming which will bring both simplicity and certainty to your stay, including a potential path to citizenship,” the president said in a Twitter post.
Mr Trump has often said he wanted an immigration system that favoured educated or highly skilled people.
While he typically depicts undocumented immigrants and asylum seekers attempting to enter the country through Mexico as violent criminals, he frequently praises those applying for H-1B visas, which require a bachelor’s degree or higher.
Nasa workers starting to feel the shutdown pinch
Nasa contractor Jack Lyons is one of thousands furloughed (AP)Federal employees in Huntsville, Alabama, where Nasa has a large workforce, are beginning to feel the problems caused by the shutdown.
The city was transformed into something of a technical and engineering hub when the agency chose to build rockets at Redstone Arsenal at the height of the space race space race.
But, a heavy reliance on the base for employment – some 38,000 people out of a city of 195,000 work at Redstone - has left some concerned as to what will happen next.
Jack Lyons, a lifelong space fanatic landed a dream job working on massive rocket test stands for Nasa, but is now spending his furlough on his small side business making props for marching bands.
A solid Republican voter until 2016, when he couldn’t bring himself to vote for Donald Trump, he’s frustrated and saddened by what’s going on in Washington.
“They're trying to use people as bargaining chips, and it just isn’t right,” he said.
Unlike civil service workers who expect to eventually get back pay, Mr Lyons doesn't know if he’ll ever see a dollar from the shutdown period.
By a vote of 411-7, the House of Representatives has passed a bill requiring that all government workers receive retroactive pay after the partial shutdown ends.
The Senate approved the bill unanimously on Thursday. The president is expected to sign the legislation.
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