White House blasts Republicans for collapse of short-term funding bill

The White House slammed President-elect Donald Trump and Republicans for the unraveling of a spending agreement that could lead to a government shutdown by the weekend.

“Republicans need to stop playing politics with this bipartisan agreement or they will hurt hard-working Americans and create instability across the country,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement.

Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance told Republicans not to support the stopgap spending measure that was negotiated in the House. Instead, they urged GOP members to support a stripped-down resolution that would also raise the debt ceiling before the new administration has to deal with the issue in 2025.

Republican leaders are now considering a plan B to avert a shutdown deadline on Friday.

“Triggering a damaging government shutdown would hurt families who are gathering to meet with their loved ones and endanger the basic services Americans from veterans to Social Security recipients rely on,” Jean-Pierre said. “A deal is a deal. Republicans should keep their word.”