Shalanda Young, the White House budget director, expressed a lack of optimism on Friday regarding the prospect of reaching a deal to avert a partial government shutdown later this month.
Addressing reporters at a breakfast meeting sponsored by the Christian Science Monitor, Young refrained from labeling her stance as pessimistic but indicated concern based on recent developments. She pointed to House Republicans’ visit to the U.S.-Mexico border this week and remarks from some lawmakers advocating for a partial shutdown, stating, “The rhetoric this week has concerned me that (a shutdown) is the path that House Republicans are headed down.”
With Congress set to reconvene next week, they face looming deadlines on January 19 and February 2 for settling government spending through September. These discussions are complicated by Republican demands to decrease fiscal 2024 discretionary spending below caps agreed upon in June.
In addition to budget negotiations, lawmakers aim to pass emergency aid for Ukraine and Israel, potentially with unrelated U.S. border security provisions attached.
Young urged House Republicans to engage in negotiations on border security and policy reforms, emphasizing that compromises are essential, as they may not “get everything they want, and people have to know how to take a deal.”