House to consider stopgap funding measure today to avert government shutdown
Washington — House Speaker Mike Johnson's plan to prevent a government shutdown will be considered by the House on Tuesday, according to a notice sent to lawmakers late Monday night.
The stopgap measure to temporarily fund the government, known as a continuing resolution, will be put on the House floor under a procedure known as suspension of the rules. This enables it to bypass the House Rules Committee, where Republicans had signaled they would not advance the bill. Considering the measure under suspension comes with some caveats: it cannot be amended, and it requires a two-thirds majority to pass the House.
This was the approach taken by former Speaker Kevin McCarthy for the last continuing resolution in late September. All of the Democrats in the House voted for the bill, and the tactic succeeded in preventing a government shutdown. But it cost McCarthy the speakership, after Rep. Matt Gaetz introduced a vote of no confidence against him.
Like McCarthy, Johnson will have to rely on Democrats to pass the stopgap measure, but there has so far been no sign that Republicans would rush to oust Johnson in the same way McCarthy was removed, since he's had so little time as speaker.
House Democrats discussed the measure in their caucus Tuesday morning but did not make a final decision on supporting the bill. Still, there were promising signs for its prospects. While Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries expressed concern about the structure of the bill, he told reporters he had seen no poison pills in it. and Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal told reporters before the Democratic Caucus meeting, "Two of the big things that we wanted are in this bill. I mean, it is a big win that it is 2023 levels. That was what we've said from the very beginning, and that it doesn't contain any poison pills."
Johnson unveiled his stopgap bill on Saturday. It would extend government funding at current levels for some agencies until Jan. 19, while others would be funded until Feb. 2. It does not include steep spending cuts demanded by conservatives, but it also does not provide funding for Ukraine, Israel and the southern border.
"The bill will stop the absurd holiday-season omnibus tradition of massive, loaded up spending bills introduced right before the Christmas recess," the Louisiana Republican said in a statement of the two-step plan.
The House Rules Committee met Monday afternoon to take up the bill, but it did not pass a rule to enable the bill to be debated on the floor. Rep. Chip Roy of Texas, a member of the committee, was one of the first Republicans to come out against Johnson's plan.
"I can swallow temporary extension if we are getting actual 'wins' on … well … ANYTHING. But not just a punt," he wrote ahead of the committee's meeting.
In addition to Roy, Republican Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, Warren Davidson of Ohio, George Santos of New York, Bob Good of Virginia and Scott Perry of Pennsylvania have said they oppose the measure. The House Freedom Caucus, a group of far-right Republicans, said Tuesday that it does not support Johnson's funding plan, but indicated that it stills back the speaker.
"The House Freedom Caucus opposes the proposed 'clean' Continuing Resolution as it contains no spending reductions, no border security, and not a single meaningful win for the American People," the group, led by Perry, said in a statement. "Republicans must stop negotiating against ourselves over fears of what the Senate may do with the promise 'roll over today and we'll fight tomorrow.' While we remain committed to working with Speaker Johnson, we need bold change."
Before the start of a new fiscal year on Oct. 1, Congress is responsible for passing a dozen appropriations bills that fund many federal government agencies for another year. The bills are often grouped together into a large piece of legislation, referred to as an "omnibus" bill.
The House has passed seven bills, while the Senate has passed three that were grouped together in a "minibus." None have made it through both chambers.
Congress passed a last-minute deal in September to keep the federal government open through mid-November just hours before a shutdown was set to take effect.
The bipartisan deal angered hard-right members who were opposed to any short-term extension that funded the government at current levels, and wanted the House to instead take up individual spending bills. McCarthy's detractors then ousted him from the role, which paralyzed the lower chamber from moving any legislation for three weeks as Republicans failed to come to a consensus over who should replace him.
Johnson acknowledged earlier this month that there was "a growing recognition" that another stopgap spending bill, known as a continuing resolution, is needed to avert a government shutdown, adding that Republicans were considering a new approach to temporarily funding the government.
He referred to the approach as a "laddered" continuing resolution that would set different lengths of funding for individual appropriations bills. The bill he rolled out Saturday extends appropriations dealing with veterans programs, transportation, housing, agriculture and energy until Jan. 19. Funding for eight other appropriations bills, including defense, would be extended until Feb. 2.
Last week, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York called the "laddered" approach a "nonstarter." But the bill's exclusion of spending cuts and amendments make it more appealing to Democrats. Jeffries has said such a bill "is the only way forward."
A White House statement on Saturday condemning the bill as an "unserious proposal" stopped short of a veto threat. President Biden signaled Monday that he could be open to signing it if it passes Congress.
"I'm not going to make a judgment on what I'd veto and what I'd sign, let's wait and see what they come up with," Mr. Biden told reporters.
Senate Democrats have mostly held back from criticizing it. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer on Monday called the bill "far from perfect," but said the "most important thing" is that it excludes steep cuts, and defense spending is included in the February extension.
The Senate was set to hold a procedural vote Monday night on a legislative vehicle for its short-term funding extension, but delayed the vote.
"We are pausing on our plans to move forward on the Senate vehicle to allow the House to move first with their proposal," Schumer said of the delay.
Jack Turman contributed reporting.