President Donald Trump called out Democrats in Congress for failing to support a short-term spending bill that would have avoided a partial shutdown of the government.
Democrats voted overwhelmingly against the measure Friday night, resulting in the shutdown taking place
The shutdown comes after negotiations between Republicans and Democrats failed over the so-called Dreamers.
While both parties agree a solution should be found for an estimated 2-3 million people who had originally come here illegally as children, Democrats have opposed stronger measures to secure the border.
Fears are that an amnesty would encourage an increase in illegal immigration if the border is not secured.
Trump has called for the wall to be constructed on the southern border to stem the flow of illegal immigration and drug trafficking. He has also called for changes to the chain-migration system and an end to the diversity lottery program.
“Democrats are far more concerned with Illegal Immigrants than they are with our great Military or Safety at our dangerous Southern Border,” Trump wrote on Twitter on Jan. 20.
“They could have easily made a deal but decided to play Shutdown politics instead.”
As a result of the shutdown all troops in uniform will not be paid until a deal is reached in Congress.
“Our maintenance activities will probably pretty much shut down ... Over 50 percent, altogether of my civilian workforce will be furloughed ... We do a lot of intelligence operations around the world and they cost money, those obviously would stop,” Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said on Friday.
Separately, the Defense Department said a shutdown would not impact the U.S. military’s war in Afghanistan or its operations against Islamist militants in Iraq and Syria.
Since coming to office exactly a year ago last year, Trump has made it a focus to improve America’s military.
Last month Trump signed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which provides for an overall increase in military spending and the acquisition of new defense equipment. Among the budgeted expenses are F-35 Joint Strike fighters, ground combat vehicles, and Virginia-class submarines.
However, the bill has yet to receive funding from Congress.
The timing of the shutdown is especially concerning given the security threats the United States faces both abroad and at home. North Korea has repeatedly threatened to strike the United States with a nuclear weapon in recent months, and the United States saw several terror attacks last year.
The last time the government shutdown was in 2013 under President Barack Obama.
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