To build or not to build? The discord in the United States government
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The US government partially closed its operations, because there was not a budget agreement on the construction of the border wall
After Democrats in the Senate blocked Trump's resolution that aims to allocate $ 5 billion in funds to build a wall along the US border and Mexico, the government of the United States entered a partial closure of the government, predicted by the president, at dawn on Saturday.
Leer en español: La construcción del muro: la discordia en el gobierno de Estados Unidos
"Now it's up to the Democrats to decide whether we will have a shutdown or not tonight," Trump said on Friday morning at a press conference at his official residence.
"I hope not. But I am completely prepared for a very long closing. This is the only option we are going to have, in our opinion," the president added.
On Saturday, and continuing the debate, lawmakers and Trump failed to reach an agreement to finance parts of the government, so several local media report that the closure will last until at least Thursday, December 27.
CNN notes that Senate Majority Leader, Mitch McConnell said there will be no action until Trump and the Senate Democrats reach an agreement.
For his part, the leader of the Senate minority, Chuck Schumer, told Trump that if he wants to open the government, he should abandon the idea of building the wall.
However, according to the Univision newspaper, with the triumph achieved in the midterm elections in November, the Democrats do not have in their plans granting Trump decisions, including building the wall, a project that they consider an expenditure of federal resources and that not helps the strengthening of security on the southern border.
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Who will be affected?
According to the BBC newspaper, this closure affects nine of the 15 federal departments, including the State, National Security, Transportation, Agriculture, and Justice.
• According to a report from the Senate committee, 800,000 government employees will stop receiving their payments only a few days after Christmas.
• Some 420,000 employees will continue to work even after the government closes, including more than 41,000 federal law enforcement and FBI correctional officers, the Drug Control Agency, the Office of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and thousands of other law enforcement and correctional officers.
• Some 380,000 employees will stop working.
• According to CNBC, access to national parks during the holidays is likely to be disrupted and travelers may suffer serious delays.
• The shutdown could cost the US economy billions of dollars, and it is not clear how long it will last.
LatinAmerican Post | Luisa Fernanda Báez
Translated from: ‘La construcción del muro: la discordia en el gobierno de Estados Unidos’
