As the week comes to a close, the prospect of a government shutdown is looming once again.
Negotiations have dragged out between Congressional leaders and the Trump administration to pass a Continuing Resolution (CR) before midnight Friday to keep the government open.
On Thursday night, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer announced that he intended to vote in favor of the CR bill put forward by House Republicans – a decision that was met with fierce backlash from a wide range of Democrats and progressives.
A Senate vote is expected Friday evening. While we don’t yet know the outcome, here’s what we do know: Shutting down our government and the services people rely on is simply immoral. Yet, we strongly oppose this version of the CR bill for several key reasons.
The bill would embolden the Trump administration and Elon Musk to further gut programs and arbitrarily withhold crucial funding appropriated by Congress.
The Constitution is clear. Decisions over how our tax dollars are spent must be made by our elected representatives through a democratically accountable process. Not by decree of an unelected billionaire.
This bill would dangerously undermine that key pillar of Congress’s constitutional power, enabling President Trump and Musk to sow more chaos and harm millions across the country and the globe.
This CR bill also pours more money into mass deportation while cutting funds for other domestic and international programs, including sweeping cuts to public services for residents of Washington, D.C.
That’s why we are working to urge lawmakers to return to the negotiating table and pass bipartisan legislation to keep the government open, fund vital services and programs, and maintain Congress’ power to spend money.
No matter the outcome of today’s vote, our advocacy for a just, moral budget won’t end.
In the coming weeks, Congress will be working to finalize broader funding legislation for the remainder of Fiscal Year 2025. Hundreds of young advocates will be joining us next weekend for Spring Lobby Weekend to urge Congress to protect funding for Medicaid and SNAP.
Please join us and tell your members of Congress: Protect Health Care and Food Assistance
Elsewhere
Columbia Student Arrested and Gaza Aid is Blocked
Last weekend, Mahmoud Khalil, an organizer and student at Columbia University, was arrested by federal authorities. He has a green card and is expecting a child shortly. He has not been accused of a crime, and the Trump administration is threatening to deport him solely over his activism for Palestine.
As a Quaker organization, we strongly support the right to non-violent protest and to call for peace in Israel and Palestine. Khalil’s arrest and threatened deportation is a challenge to everyone’s right to free speech.
While this attack on free speech continues, the Israeli government is restricting aid from entering Gaza as a tactic in ceasefire negotiations. This is the war crime of using starvation as a method of warfare and is leading to suffering and mass death in Gaza.
Upcoming Trump Actions on Migration
Two troubling immigration plans are expected to be announced soon from the Trump administration.
Trump reportedly plans to invoke the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 in the next few days. This is a deeply shameful law which authorized the internment of Japanese Americans in the Second World War.
There are also plans for another Muslim ban, which may be more expansive than previous bans, sweeping up immigrants already in the U.S. with “hostile attitudes.” Together with Mahmoud Khalil’s arrest, this raises serious free speech implications
New from FCNL
- Our Advocacy Teams usually take on one policy focus per year. With the maturing program and the current political situation, some teams are flexing to also protect clean energy tax credits from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). FCNL’s Tim Heishman shares more.
- We have seen exciting developments on the legislation for a Truth and Healing Commission on the Indian Boarding School era. FCNL’s Anna Aguto breaks down the latest.
