WASHINGTON Congress could navigate a shutdown and a presidential impeachment inquiry if lawmakers and the Trump administration cant reach an agreement on government funding during the next three weeks.
The two events havent overlapped before in the nations history. If that happens next month, however, roughly 2 million federal workers would get hit in their wallets as the holiday season begins, including staffers working on the impeachment proceedings.
Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer on Tuesday preemptively blamed President Donald Trump.
Im increasingly worried that President Trump may want to shut down the government again because of impeachment, the New York Democrat said. I hope and pray he wont want to cause another government shutdown because it might be a diversion away from impeachment.
For their part, top Republicans have been accusing Democrats on a near-daily basis of focusing on impeachment rather than legislation, affecting not just appropriations but other priorities like a prescription drug pricing bill and the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade pact.
My friends in Democratic leadership insist over and over their focus on undoing the 2016 election will not keep them from the substantive legislation that American families need, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said late last week.
None of the dozen fiscal 2020 spending measures have been enacted, and top appropriators arent particularly hopeful for resolution in the 10 legislative days left when both chambers are in session before Nov. 21, when current stopgap funding expires.
And unlike the 34-day shutdown that began last December, which affected about 40% of federal workers, a shutdown starting Nov. 22 would affect all Cabinet departments and congressional staff, just as they are about to receive their last paychecks before the holiday shopping season begins.
By contrast, last years shutdown didnt begin until Dec. 22. The second-longest shutdown in history, a 21-day lapse, began Dec. 16, 1995. And in both instances, the Legislative Branch spending bill had already become law, sparing congressional staff.
Thats not the case this time. House employees could lose a weeks worth of November salary in their end-of-month Black Friday paychecks, if lawmakers dont cut a deal before they leave town for the Thanksgiving recess.
Senate staff, who normally would be paid Dec. 5 for the last two weeks of November, could see their paychecks cut by more than half, and on Dec. 20 wouldnt get paid at all if the shutdown persists.
Most federal agency employees would feel the pinch in their mid-December pay dates, typically Dec. 13 or Dec. 16. According to Office of Personnel Management shutdown guidance, payroll processing for pre-shutdown work is an excepted activity that continues during a shutdown.
During a shutdown, unless they voluntarily give up or donate salary, lawmakers would get paid in full thanks to Article 1, Section 6 of the Constitution and a permanent appropriation. That protection doesnt extend to staff, who would either work without pay or be furloughed.
Because impeachment is a constitutional responsibility, lawmakers could continue working on the inquiry without violating the Antideficiency Act, which prevents agencies from spending federal dollars without congressional approval or above the amount appropriated.
During a lapse in appropriations, Congress and the Executive may incur obligations to carry out core constitutional powers, Julia C. Matta, the Government Accountability Office managing associate general counsel, wrote in February.
