After 35 days, the U.S. partial government shutdown may be finally coming to an end. According to the Drudge Report, President Donald Trump is planning to hold a press conference at 1:00 pm ET to elaborate on the details.
Temporary Reprieve
A new funding agreement to re-open the U.S. government will likely be announced after 1:00 p.m. CNBC’s Washington correspondent Eamon Javers describes the upcoming address as a “full blown presidential announcement.”
The set up in the Rose Garden right now is for a full blown presidential announcement complete with TelePrompTer, etc. Still no official word on timing or topic of the president’s remarks.
— Eamon Javers (@EamonJavers) January 25, 2019
Although details remain scarce, the president is expected to announce “temporary” stop-gap measures to re-open the affected government agencies and departments. Amid the shutdown, roughly 800,000 federal workers have been placed on furlough. They missed their second full paycheck on Friday.
A “temporary” deal is seen as a major breakthrough after Democrats outright refused to grant any appropriations for a border wall with Mexico. However, any temporary measure would likely require further negotiations to keep government services funded for the remainder of the year.
The news came mere hours after Senator Tim Kaine hinted that a new deal was in the cards. Negotiations have picked up since President Trump vowed to declare a national emergency, which would have allowed him to bypass the budget approval process for the proposed border wall. By declaring a national emergency, the president would be able to divert funds from the Department of Defense to the southern border where a steel barrier could then be erected.
This story is breaking. Stay tuned for additional coverage.
Featured image courtesy of AP Photo/Alex Brandon