Many US government services are in danger of having to shut down within a few days because there is no longer money for them. To prevent this from happening, politicians must reach an agreement on taking on new debt, but this agreement has been delayed.
The United States has what is called a debt ceiling. This is the maximum amount of debt owed by the government. This maximum has almost been reached and can only be increased if representatives reach an agreement in the House of Representatives.
But time is running out. An agreement on increasing the ceiling must be reached by the end of Saturday, September 30. Otherwise, the US government will have to cut spending.
An agreement seems far-fetched. This is mainly because part of the Republican Party is sticking to its guns. Party members believe that increasing the ceiling is irresponsible and want the government to put its finances in order instead of taking on additional debt.
Although the majority of Democrats and Republicans in the House of Representatives support increasing the ceiling, the rebellious part of the Republican Party says it is pushing for the departure of Republican President Kevin McCarthy if he obtains a majority across the Democratic Party. Obtain.
Wages are not paid
Therefore, the parties are busy looking for other ways to reach an agreement. If this is not achieved by Saturday evening, only essential government services will remain open from Sunday.
This includes border control, rescue personnel and departments concerned with national security. Other services, such as city halls and supervision of nature parks, have also been closed. Part of the army is also sent home and waste may not be collected.
Hundreds of thousands, or perhaps even millions, of Americans will temporarily go unpaid. Once the shutdown ends, they will continue to receive unpaid wages.
Regularly raising the debt ceiling causes problems in the United States. Since 1980, the government has been temporarily shut down about ten times. The longest period was 35 days, in the winter of 2018 and 2019.
