Trump faces govt shutdown test: Congress to vote on Republican proposal to extend funding through Nov 21

US lawmakers are racing against time to avert a government shutdown, with the House of Representatives set to vote Friday on a Republican-backed stopgap measure that would keep federal agencies funded through November 21.

The high-stakes vote believed to be a critical test for President Donald Trump, whose influence over congressional Republicans is being closely watched as budget brinkmanship threatens to disrupt federal operations.

The bill, known as a continuing resolution or CR, would keep federal agencies operating at current levels through November 21, while providing $88 million to protect members of Congress, the executive branch and the Supreme Court from the threat of political violence in the aftermath of conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s assassination.

But the task of getting the legislation through Congress and onto Republican President Donald Trump’s desk before current funding runs out at midnight on September 30 has become a political obstacle course.

Republican congressional leaders need their fractious 219-213 House majority to show unity in the face of monolithic opposition from Democrats, and then win support from at least seven Democrats to secure passage in the U.S. Senate.

“It’s always down to the wire here, because we have one of the smallest margins in U.S. history,” House Speaker Mike Johnson, who can afford to lose no more than two Republican votes if all Democrats vote no, told Fox News. “But I think at the end of the day, we’ll do the right thing, keep the government open."

According to Reuters, the temporary spending bill is designed to prevent a lapse in government services at the end of September while negotiations continue on a longer-term funding package.

The stopgap measure includes conservative policy riders on border security and federal spending caps, reflecting Trump’s push for tighter fiscal discipline and a harder line on immigration.

The Washington Post noted that the White House has quietly urged Republicans to hold the line, portraying the measure as a demonstration of Trump’s ability to unite his party ahead of bigger battles with Democrats over defence, healthcare and social spending. Yet divisions remain.

Some hardliner conservatives have demanded deeper cuts, while Democrats have criticised the proposal as a political manoeuvre rather than a genuine attempt at bipartisan compromise.

The stakes are high. A recent Newsweek poll found that 62 percent of Americans would blame Republicans in Congress if the government shuts down, a political risk that could weaken Trump’s leverage ahead of delicate negotiations with Senate Democrats.

For President Trump, the showdown highlights a broader test of governing versus campaigning. He has frequently highlighted his success in forcing spending cuts during his first term, but analysts say the optics of a shutdown could damage his efforts to project stability in his second.

“The political challenge for Trump is balancing his base’s appetite for confrontation with the wider public’s desire for competence and order,” The Hill reported.

If the House clears the measure, attention will turn to the Senate, where Democrats have signalled strong resistance. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Thursday the plan “isn’t a serious proposal” and warned Republicans against “playing chicken with the American people’s livelihoods.”

Failure to reach a deal would mean hundreds of thousands of federal workers face furloughs and key government services from food inspections to passport processing would grind to a halt.

As Reuters put it, “the coming days will show whether Trump’s grip on House Republicans is strong enough to steer the party away from a shutdown, or whether partisan divisions will again push Washington to the brink.”

With inputs from agencies