38 Republicans "betrayed", the US government almost shut down, Trump's "strong stance" being exposed?

Donald Trump, who advocates for the integration of the three branches of government, is also experiencing political obstacles on his path. On Friday night, Eastern Time, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a short-term government spending bill by a vote of 366 to 34, extending the funding period from Friday night to mid-March next year. According to CCTV, the latest bill is almost identical to the one that failed to pass the House on Thursday, but it removed the part about the debt ceiling the part that Trump had called for. Earlier on Thursday, Trump expressed his desire for Congress to completely eliminate the debt ceiling, but the new bill supported by Trump failed to pass, receiving 174 votes in favor and 235 votes against. Analysts believe that this event indicates that Trump, who seemed to have the three branches of government united and stable politically, now has an uncertain future. Thirty-eight Republican members of the House, Trump's GOP colleagues, opposed his call to "suspend or eliminate the debt ceiling," almost leading to a government shutdown. Although the bill passed at the last minute on Friday allows the U.S. government to continue operating, it mainly relies on compromises from the Democratic Party, and the issue of raising the debt ceiling for Trump's new administration remains unresolved. Not all Republicans listen to Trump Analysts say that conflicts within the Republican Party, combined with Musk's unpredictable statements and actions, could make it harder for Trump's $8 trillion economic agenda to pass. For those who hoped that "Trumponomics" would boost economic growth, this will undoubtedly be very disappointing, but for investors, the reduced debt may help curb the rise in U.S. bond yields. The debt ceiling will be reinstated on January 2, prohibiting the U.S. Treasury from issuing new debt to pay for expenditures approved by Congress. Although the Treasury Department has the ability to postpone the so-called "X-date" (the actual date of default) until early next summer, the failure of Congress to agree on a long-term fiscal plan has caused two of the three major credit rating agencies to downgrade America's debt. During his campaign, Trump promised to implement a tax-cut-centered agenda. He plans to extend the expiring provisions of the 2017 tax reform and introduce new tax relief measures. Investors expect these policies to boost inflation, requiring the issuance of a large amount of new debt, causing the 10-year U.S. bond yield to exceed 4.5% this week. Paradoxically, Trump also stated during his campaign that he intended to balance the budget many economists are skeptical of this based on the current tax reform discussions. According to reports, the reason for the need to extend the 2017 tax reform provisions is that Congress manipulated the fiscal numbers at that time. According to current rules, Congress can circumvent procedural rules by using the "budget reconciliation" process, but only if the fiscal legislation does not increase the deficit after 10 years. To bypass this restriction, Congress set the tax cut policy of 2017 to expire at the end of 2025, assuming that future legislators would extend it. Now, seven years have passed, and some members within Trump's party are starting to show dissatisfaction with the fiscal chaos caused by this. Chip Roy, a Republican Congressman from Texas, is one of the conservative members willing to challenge the leadership on the debt issue. In his speech in the House on Thursday night, he harshly criticized his Republican colleagues: "Congratulations, since regaining the majority on November 5, 2023, you have increased the debt. This is embarrassing and shameful." This internal division led to the downfall of former Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy in 2023, and it may now lead to his successor, current Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, being ousted as well Johnson will seek reelection on January 3, and just two Republican votes against him could make his reelection fail. In addition to internal issues, there are external obstacles the resistance to Trump's agenda currently comes not only from Republicans, but also from Democrats. Following their defeat, Democrats no longer need to defend the government, and although Republicans can still receive Democratic votes, the cost will undoubtedly be higher. This article is from Wall Street View, by Jiang Zihan; GMTEight editor: Wenwen.