The frustrating December ritual of congressional haggling over government funding up until the brink of a shutdown reared its head again this year, but what grabbed a surprising share of headlines was the startling silence that came from the White House as negotiations continued.
As the uninterrupted continuation of federal functions hung in the balance late last week, President Joe Biden, who still has nearly a month left in his term, remained mum on the contentious battle, leaving many to wonder why he would choose not to weigh in, as Fox News reports.
As Republicans, Democrats, and President-elect Donald Trump duked it out over federal funding last week, there was a conspicuous sense of quiet coming from 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
Whereas a battle over a potential government shutdown is usually the province of the commander-in-chief, Biden remained utterly above the fray, leading to a host of questions from curious journalists.
On Friday, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre received numerous inquiries from reporters, one of whom asked, “Why hasn't President Biden said anything in the public about this? Don't the American people deserve to know why millions of federal workers could enter this holiday period without a paycheck?”
Jean-Pierre deflected, saying, “All Americans need to know that Republicans are getting in the way here and they are the ones who have created this mess. That's the reality. That's the fact. This is not the first time we've been here. And the president has had this approach before.”
She went on, “He understands how Congress works. He's been around for some time. He understands what strategy works here to get this done” also adding that Biden had been “getting regular updates from his team.”
Dissatisfied with Jean-Pierre's response, those in attendance in the briefing room continued to press for answers about Biden's absence on the issue.
In response to the general curiosity about the president's lack of input on the crisis, Jean-Pierre said, “The president is the president of the United States, and he is leading.”
That remark prompted to journalist to follow up by saying, “To be clear, the strategy is he is leading by staying in the background?”
Jean-Pierre continued to dodge the point by musing, “The strategy is that Congress, Republicans in particular, need to do their jobs and get out of their own way and focus on the American people, not their billionaire friends.”
She continued, “That is what needs to happen. And that's what the president wants to see,” though she did not offer further insight into Biden's level of engagement with the process.
With Biden effectively AWOL, President-elect Donald Trump has played the role of de facto commander in chief, as David Marcus wrote in an op-ed for Fox News.
As Marcus noted, “In the space of just a few days, Trump's pressure on the Congress, including siccing his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) attack dogs Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy on reckless spending, turned a 1,500 page monstrosity of a bill into a slim 120-page banger of basic necessities, including disaster relief and help for farmers,” and given that level of success, few Americans are likely to lament Biden's decision to sit this one out.
