WASHINGTON — The U.S. government could shut down nonessential functions just weeks before the Nov. 5 presidential election as congressional Democrats signal their opposition to a House Republican spending bill that would establish stricter rules for proof of citizenship to vote.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) included language from the Protecting American Voter Eligibility Act (SAVE Act) in the House bill. Pending Continuation Resolution The bill, at the urging of Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump, must be passed by September 30th to keep the lights on in Washington, D.C.
Lawmakers returned to the Capitol on Monday from their August recess. Democratic leaders said the SAVE Act was unnecessary and could block a vote, while Republicans pointed to past bipartisan support for it and now Too difficult To verify the citizenship status of voters.
The House Republican bill not only drew stiff opposition from Democrats in both chambers and the White House, who called the voting provision a “poison pill,” but also failed to appease GOP fiscal hawks who dislike a temporary spending bill, even though it would fund the government through March 28.
Each fiscal year that begins on Oct. 1, Congress must fund the government through 12 separate appropriations bills or so-called continuing resolutions (CRs).
Johnson's game plan
Republicans hold a slim 220-211 lead in the House of Representatives, giving Johnson little leverage in the spending fight.
Trump, 78, helped redirect the debate to election rules, and added a controversial provision that means Democrats cannot be expected to help pass the bill in the House but could block it in the Senate.
“If the government doesn't understand, I would shut it down right away,” Trump said in a recent interview. “It should be in the bill. If it's not in the bill, shut it down. So I'm not there, but you know, I have influence.”
As president, Trump led the United States into a 35-day partial shutdown in late 2018 over funding for a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border, which the then-president ultimately paid for through defense budget redirections.
A partial government shutdown before the election would likely set off fierce accountability battles, with federal employees potentially not getting paid and public facilities such as national parks potentially being closed.
Five Democrats voted in favor of the SAVE Act, which was put on the ballot in July, which would require people to provide proof of citizenship to state officials, such as a passport, a state-issued REAL ID showing citizenship, or a naturalization certificate, in order to register to vote.
The six-month grace period on the CR is part of Johnson's effort to buy Republicans more time to negotiate after the election, when President Trump is back in the White House and Republicans have control of the Senate.
“A continuing resolution that ends in December is better than a six-month resolution,” Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), the ranking member of the House Appropriations Committee, argued last week.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-New York) and Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Patty Murray (D-Wash.) also slammed the speaker's proposal.
“Chairman Johnson is making the same mistakes as his predecessor. [Kevin] “McCarthy wasted valuable time a year ago catering to the demands of the MAGA hard-right. This tactic didn't work last September and it won't work this year,” they said in a joint statement.
“The House Republican funding proposal is an ominous case of deja vu.”
In an interview on Sunday, Schumer dismissed Johnson's offer as “highbrow.” Letter to a Dear Colleague “The only way to get things done is through bipartisan efforts,” he said.
Reaction from both sides
Democrats aren't the only opponents Johnson will have to contend with.
“I will be voting categorically against the Continuing Appropriations and Miscellaneous Matters Bill this week. I don't care what shiny objects this bill has attached to it or what fake battles it starts and ends. Congress is spending to the point of ruining the country, and this bill doesn't cut spending,” said Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.). I wrote it to X.
The U.S. national debt exceeded $35 trillion in July, and interest payments on the debt is predicted to exceed Defense spending.
Deja Vu
During a similar spending fight at this time last year, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) and seven other Republicans banded together with 208 House Democrats to unseat Rep. McCarthy (R-Calif.).
Gaetz had warned McCarthy that he would move to step down as speaker if the then-speaker introduced a resolution opposing the resolution. With no option to avoid the shutdown, McCarthy did just that and was ousted. McCarthy has since accused Gaetz of plotting against him for personal reasons.
Republicans spent nearly a month trying to select a new speaker, and Mr. McCarthy later resigned from the House. Mr. Johnson overcame a similar ouster attempt by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) in April after negotiating an aid replenishment for war-torn Ukraine with Democratic support.
Other topics on the agenda
Congress is due to recess again on September 27 as lawmakers prepare for the final stages of their re-election campaigns.
Over the next three weeks, the House is scheduled to debate several high-profile bills related to China and border security.
Lawmakers are also expected to step up their investigations during their brief return to the capital, with Republicans likely to step up their pursuit of Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz.
House leaders also convened a bipartisan special committee to investigate the attempted assassination of President Trump during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13.
