U.S. Congress Moves to Approve Budget and Avoid Government Shutdown

The U.S. Congress is facing a significant decision on Friday regarding the approval of a $450 billion budget for several government agencies or forcing them to halt part of their operations, and it appears to be leaning towards a temporary budget extension. Meanwhile, Donald Trump and the Republicans continue to emphasize funding for the construction of the border wall. According to Reuters, informed sources in Congress have indicated that the possibility of extending the deadline of December 7 for one or two weeks is under consideration. Without Congressional approval, several government agencies, including the State Department, the Department of Agriculture, and the Department of Homeland Security, will face budget shortfalls for the remainder of the current fiscal year, which ends on September 30, affecting their operations and employee salaries. Donald Trump has requested $5 billion in this year's budget for the construction of the wall at the Mexican border. However, Democrats argue that this wall will not effectively prevent illegal immigration and drug trafficking. Instead of building a wall, they advocate for continuing to erect fencing and utilizing advanced technologies to identify illegal crossings along the border, which would be less costly. The total cost of constructing the wall is estimated to exceed $25 billion, and due to the seizure of private properties along its route, it is likely to face numerous lawsuits against the government. On Monday, Donald Trump tweeted: "If the Democrats support the wall's construction, we will save billions of dollars. In any case, we will not allow people to enter the country illegally. If necessary, we will close all southern borders. At the same time, it will stop the entry of drugs." Reuters reminds us that Donald Trump has previously threatened that if the necessary budget for his wall is not approved, he will shut down parts of government agencies. Trump was scheduled to meet on Tuesday with Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic leader in the House of Representatives, and Chuck Schumer, the Republican leader in the Senate, to resolve this deadlock. However, the meeting has been postponed due to the memorial service for George Bush in Washington. If the President and Congress do not reach an agreement on the budget for government agencies, the operations of important departments such as the FBI and other law enforcement agencies in the U.S. will continue without any issues. However, the implementation of several programs will be delayed. These include limiting visits to national parks, reducing the scope of the IRS's activities, and suspending some programs of the Department of Justice. However, according to informed sources in Congress, the investigation by Robert Mueller, the special counsel of the Department of Justice regarding Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, and many important plans of various departments, including the Department of Defense, whose budget has already been approved and paid, will not be affected.