US House rejects Trump-backed Republican Spending Bill, government shutdown looms

US House reject spending bill: On Thursday, the US House of Representatives voted down a Republican-led spending bill for a temporary stopgap measure expected to stave off an imminent government shutdown; lawmakers are now rushing toward the Friday midnight deadline.

The bill has the aim of extending government funding and suspending the national debt ceiling was unsuccessful by a vote of 174-235. The setback comes just one day ahead of the Federal government running out of cash, threatening all major disruptions, including possible delays in travel during the holidays.

However, as much as they had some backing from President-elect Donald Trump and the billionaire ally, Elon Musk, the bill staggered through considerable internal opposition coming from the Republican ranks. In total, 38 Republicans voted against this measure, aligning with almost all Democrats to reject it in protest.

Federal operations are, of course, going to be grinded to a halt by the shutdown, affecting everything from national parks through border enforcement to pay freezes for more than 2 million federal workers. The Transportation Security Administration also warned that air travel might be impacted by longer-than-usual lines in airports during the holidays.

However, the supporters of the bill, including Donald Trump, considered this to be an absolutely necessary step to ease future tax cuts and spending decisions. Trump had also wanted debt-ceiling suspension because he believed it would pivot much-anticipated tax cuts, including an $8-trillion tax cut. However, it has been argued that this does not do much to help the current $ 36 trillion national debt.

The spending bill's rejection has also shed light on the unabated political turbulence within the Republican Party, with Speaker Mike Johnson, who happened to take office by a reshuffle in leadership that ousted the earlier speaker, Kevin McCarthy, left trying to rally his party around key issues. Johnson has turned to the Democrats for assistance regarding previous votes, yet he did not find this effort successful.

Discontent with the political chaos engulfing the government funding mess could unravel Johnson's authority. Some of the party sources suggest they might not back him as a speaker while Congress meets in January. Such threats could set another onslaught in the months ahead of Trump's return to office.