President Biden and White House Blame Extremist Republicans for Potential Government Shutdown

President Biden and his administration are placing blame on a group of “extremist Republicans” as the US government faces the possibility of a shutdown. Biden’s advisers have chosen to take a hands-off approach in lawmakers’ deliberations to fund the government, with the expectation that if the Republican-led House fails to reach a consensus, they will be blamed for any disruption. Biden criticized the Republicans, saying they were reneging on a deal that had been made, which would have harmful consequences for the country. The White House plans to highlight the potential ramifications of a government shutdown, such as flight delays, closure of child care centers, and impacts on nutrition assistance programs and loans for farmers. Cabinet officials, including Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, will be involved in discussing these issues. Biden supports efforts by Sen. Chuck Schumer and Sen. Mitch McConnell to reach a short-term spending agreement to prevent a shutdown. However, if Ukraine aid is included in the spending bill, the requested amount of funding is expected to be smaller than what the White House initially proposed. Biden believes a deal brokered by Senate leadership, rather than appeasing fringe Republicans, is the best way forward. The White House is closely monitoring any progress on Capitol Hill regarding funding for the government. Ultimately, the administration plans to emphasize who is responsible for the potential mess that could arise from a shutdown. In previous debt ceiling negotiations, Biden was criticized for his handling of the situation. However, the White House now claims that Republicans are at fault for dropping the ball.