A government funding package pushed by Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson failed to pass Wednesday. There are less than two weeks left to avoid a shutdown starting October 1st.
The final vote is 202 to 220, 14 Except for House Republicans three House Democrats opposed the bill. Two Republicans voted “no.”
The bill was not expected to pass, as several House Republicans had criticized the proposal before the vote. Given Republicans' slim majority in the House and widespread Democratic opposition, Johnson could only afford a few defections from his own party. Johnson delayed a vote on the funding package last week in an effort to solidify Republican support, but that effort also did not help pass the bill.
Johnson's proposed bill combined a six-month stopgap funding measure known as a continuing resolution with the Protect American Voter Status (SAVE) Act, a controversial proposal that would require people to show proof of citizenship when registering to vote.
Donald Trump, who has defended unfounded claims of widespread foreign voting, had pressured Johnson to reject any funding measures unless they included an “election security” clause, with the former president toughening his stance just hours before the vote.
“If Republicans don't fully understand the SAVE Act, then they should not agree to a continuing resolution in any form,” he said on his social media platform, Truth Social, on Wednesday.
Critics of the Save Act worry that it is already illegal for foreign nationals to vote and that such a law would prevent legitimate voters from casting their ballots. House Democrats remain overwhelmingly opposed to the proposal, with only three in favor. Supported Johnson's bill will be introduced on Wednesday.
“Chairman Johnson must reject the most extreme voices in his party and move quickly toward a four-corner agreement that will avoid a costly Republican-led government shutdown,” House Democratic Caucus Chairman Pete Aguilar said Wednesday. “The American people want an end to the chaos and division.”
With Johnson's bill defeated, the speaker must find a new way to avert a government shutdown just weeks before Election Day. Lawmakers from both parties expect Johnson to now turn to a “clean” continuing resolution without the SAVE Act, but the speaker dismissed questions about any contingency measures before Wednesday's vote.
“We'll see how the Bills go,” Johnson told reporters, “we're on the field in the middle of the game. The quarterback is calling the plays. We're going to execute the plays.”
Many of the hard-right Republicans who voted against Johnson's bill have signaled they will reject any continuing resolution, accusing the speaker of casting an uncertain vote just to justify a shift in hopes of passing a clean funding bill.
Far-right Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, who ultimately cast the “abstain” vote on Wednesday, denounced Johnson's tactic as “a classic bait-and-switch tactic to infuriate his supporters.”
“Johnson is leading a fake fight he has no intention of actually fighting,” Greene said on The X on Tuesday. “I refuse to lie to anyone that this plan will work, and I'm already [dead on arrival] This week, Speaker Johnson must reach out to the Democrats who have been working with him all this time to rally the votes he needs to get the job done.”
Even if Johnson's bill passes the House, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-Calif., has made it clear that it has no chance of passing the Senate. In a floor speech on Wednesday, Schumer reiterated that only “bipartisan, bicameral cooperation” can prevent a government shutdown next month.
“Over the last two weeks, Speaker Johnson and House Republicans have wasted valuable time on proposals that everyone knows will never become law. His own Republican conference cannot unite behind his proposals,” Schumer said. “The Speaker has [continuing resolution] “If that fails, he will move to a strategy that actually works: bipartisan cooperation, which is the only thing that has kept our government afloat every time we've faced a funding deadline.”
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell issued a stern warning to House Republicans at a press conference on Tuesday that a government shutdown so close to Election Day would jeopardize the party's standing with voters and risk losing seats.
“The one thing we can't have is a government shutdown,” McConnell said. “It would be politically foolish for us to do that.”
