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Speaker Mike Johnson on Friday corralled his oft-fractured House conference to pass a Republican plan to fund the government through November 21, as Congress scrambles to avert a looming shutdown.
The 217-212 vote to advance the seven-week stopgap bill now amplifies pressure on Senate Democrats to decide whether to back the measure — or stand by their vows to oppose it and risk a potential spending stalemate.
Friday marked the latest test of Johnson’s ability to keep his narrow Republican majority behind him – able to only lose two votes and still advance the bill to the Senate. Republican Reps. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Victoria Spartz of Indiana voted against the bill, while Democratic Rep. Jared Golden of Maine crossed to join Republicans in support of it.
The deadline is still over a week away, but Friday’s vote dramatically increases the likelihood of a funding lapse: Both GOP and Democratic leaders are insisting the other side needs to back off their stance but — so far — neither side is blinking. And both chambers could now leave Washington for the next week, or more, without a path forward.
In a sign of the stalemate, the Senate rejected both the House-passed short-term government funding measure and a Democratic alternative later in the day Friday.
The Democratic plan was rejected 47-45, and the House-passed version failed 44-48. Democratic Sen. John Fetterman voted for both and Republican Sen. Rand Paul voted against both. Both resolutions needed 60 votes to be adopted.
The Senate is now poised to leave Friday afternoon for a week-long recess, meaning they are expected to return to the Capitol with less than 48 hours to avert a shutdown, if the current schedule holds.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters Friday morning that the Senate is “unlikely” to return early, putting more pressure on Senate Democrats to capitulate as the clock ticks down.
Republicans have argued their bill to fund the government through November 20 is a “clean” continuing resolution, or CR, with only $30 million in extra security money for members of Congress and $58 million for security for the executive and judicial branches. It also includes a funding “fix” for DC, which would free up $1 billion of the city’s own money, adjusting a mistake in an earlier bill.
The Democratic bill, on the other hand, includes expensive health care changes, such as extending enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies that are set to expire at the end of the year.
Republicans have argued it’s inappropriate to add that to a seven-week funding bill and those issues should be negotiated as part of a year-end funding bill. But Democratic leaders, under pressure from their base to fight President Donald Trump and the GOP majority, are eager to use their leverage in this fight.