Government Shutdown Looms

This week, the 118th Congress dissolved into chaos as a House continuing resolution was abandoned by the Republican majority. A shutdown of the Federal government now looms over the country.

The bill would have funded the government into March of 2025, and extended the 2018 Farm Bill for another year. But Elon Musk tweeted Wednesday that members of Congress that vote for the resolution (quote) “deserve to be voted out in 2 years.” President-elect Donald Trump later agreed with Musk. Republicans in Congress quickly abandoned the bill, pushing the government toward shutdown.

If the deadline of midnight, Friday, December 20th is missed, hundreds of thousands of Federal employees will be furloughed until the funding conflict is resolved. The abandoned deal would have funded the government through March 14, 2025. 

Farm groups, including the American Farm Bureau and the National Farmers Union, urged lawmakers to pass the original 1500 page bill, which would have delivered over $21 Billion in crop loss assistance to farmers. A separate section of the bill would have paid $10 Billion in economic relief to farmers via a formula. 

Thursday, a second attempt at passing a continuing resolution failed. The stripped down bill extended the Farm Bill for 12 months, but removed the year-round E15 provision that was in the original bill.

Among Federal agencies, the Farm Credit Administration will remain open during the shutdown. In past shutdowns, some routine food safety inspections by the Food and Drug Administration halted. 

For Market to Market, I’m Peter Tubbs