Republicans reportedly eye stopgap deal and raising debt limit after Trump inauguration in race to avert shutdown – US politics live | Donald Trump

The government is careening toward a shutdown, but you’d never know that at AmericaFest, an annual Turning Point USA conference that feels like a victory lap this year, with TPUSA claiming credit for Trump’s 2024 electoral victory and attempting to stake out its place at the heart of the conservative movement.

In the expo hall, students, rightwing media figures, conservative pastors and vendors mill around swapping promotional materials and basking in the new Trump era.

Nate DeGrave, a Phoenix resident who spent a year in federal lockup for his role in the storming of the US Capitol on 6 January 2021, took selfies in the convention hall and told the Guardian he’d come for “the love for America, the patriotism, the love, the support”.

“What I’m really hoping for is some kind of restitution, reparations of some kind,” said DeGrave, who was optimistic that Trump – who has vowed to pardon January 6 defendants on his first day in office – would help restore the reputations and livelihoods of people who participated in the Capitol riot.

“He’s gonna wipe out the last four years.”

The US government is less than 12 hours away from shutting down, and Congress – by which we mean House Republicans – still has no plan to keep it open. But the GOP seems to be nearing one, with reports circulating that GOP leaders including speaker Mike Johnson have proposed legislation to keep funding going until March, and raise the debt ceiling once Donald Trump takes office in exchange for major spending cuts. But there’s no telling if that can pass before the shutdown happens, or at all. At the White House, Joe Biden’s press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre condemned Republicans for “doing the bidding of their billionaire friends” and said a government shutdown could disrupt the transition to the second Trump administration.

Here’s more on this developing story:

• Biden has not personally commented on the spending showdown, but Jean-Pierre said he has been in touch with top Democrats in Congress.

• Elon Musk, who played a major role in sinking a bipartisan funding compromise that appeared set to pass Congress earlier this week, said House Republicans’ latest spending plan “sounds promising”.

• The US government has warned its employees that a shutdown could happen, Jean-Pierre said.

In their closed-door conference meeting, House Republican leaders have proposed authorizing government funding until March, and increasing the debt ceiling after Donald Trump inaugurated and the GOP takes control of Congress, Punchbowl News reports.

It is unclear if their funding proposal can be enacted before midnight, when a government shutdown begins, or if it will be acceptable to Trump, who has demanded the limit on how much debt the US government can hold be increased while Joe Biden remains president.

According to Punchbowl, House Republicans have proposed two options for funding the government over the next three months: one that can be passed today but will require Democratic votes and excludes aid for farmers and disaster relief, or a second bill that authorizes both the aid and the spending, but under House rules can only be voted on tomorrow.

As for the debt limit, Punchbowl says Republican leaders have reached an “agreement” to increase it by $1.5tn in the first major piece of legislation Trump is expected to sign, and will couple it with $2.5tn in spending cuts. They note that they will target for reduction mandatory government spending – a category that includes Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare, as well as programs to fight poverty and help poor people afford food.

The US government has begun warning its employees that a shutdown could happen, Karine Jean-Pierre said.

“We believe that there’s still time for Congress to prevent a partial shutdown. We believe that, but in the interest of prudent planning, we want to be prudent here, agencies did start notifying their employees for of their potential furlough today at noon,” the White House press secretary said.

Karine Jean-Pierre made clear the White House views Donald Trump and Elon Musk as responsible for the breakdown in the spending deal that has brought the government to the brink of a shutdown.

“Congressional Republicans did what they did because of what the president-elect said, and what Elon Musk said, that’s the reality,” Jean-Pierre told reporters.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre condemned Republicans for their alliance with billionaires, which she blamed for upending congressional funding talks and bringing the government to the brink of a shutdown.

“Republicans blew up this deal – they did – and they need to fix this, period,” Jean-Pierre said. “[Republicans need] to stop playing politics with a government shutdown, and … they’re doing the bidding of their billionaire friends, that’s what we’re seeing, at the expense of hard-working Americans.”

Jean-Pierre did not name names, but billionaires Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy both loudly condemned a bipartisan spending deal that Congress was expected earlier this week to approve, before ultimately abandoning it at Donald Trump’s urging.

Referring to Trump and congressional Republicans, including speaker Mike Johnson, Jean-Pierre said: “This is a mess that they created, and they need to fix this.”

House Republicans will soon convene and discuss their latest plan to prevent a government shutdown from beginning at midnight, and answer Donald Trump’s demands for a spending bill that also raises the debt ceiling.

CNN reports that lawmakers will meet at 12.30pm, with much to be decided. Media reports indicate that the House speaker, Mike Johnson, will propose breaking up what was one big spending bill into multiple single-issue bills that will keep the government open for another three months and approve aid for disaster relief and to farmers. But, despite Trump’s request, the speaker will not propose legislation to increase the debt ceiling – which could spark opposition in the GOP conference.

In order for legislation to pass today, it will need to attract a two-thirds majority of votes in the House, which means many Democrats will have to be on board. If the GOP wants to enact it with a simple majority, it will need to pass it through the rules committee, and wait until tomorrow for a floor vote. If they go the latter path, government funding will lapse, but perhaps only briefly.