Congress passed four spending bills last week, failing to complete action to avert a partial government shutdown.
So, I’ll try it again this week.
But there’s a catch.
Only by Congressional logic would they add two bills and take one day less to get it all done.
Lawmakers have until Friday to approve six spending packages. But neither the House nor the Senate will resume session until Tuesday night.
Well, here we go again.
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“Watching the House Republicans is like watching a football team whose best plays are punting and blocking,” said Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz. “We blocked (Senate Minority Leader Mitch) McConnell’s (R-Ky.) supplement, but we again opposed the necessary spending cuts.”
Still, there is a lot of optimism among bipartisan House and Senate leaders that a shutdown of Congress early Saturday will be avoided. Over the weekend, both sides introduced two new bills: one to fund military construction and Veterans Affairs, transportation and housing, agriculture, energy and water, and one to fund commerce, justice and science programs, as well as two new bills for the Interior Department. A comprehensive universal plan was announced.
The House plans to advance the policy on Wednesday. The Senate will sit on Thursday or Friday, just before the 11:59:59 p.m. deadline.
These bills account for less than a third of all government funding. A bigger problem will appear on his March 22nd. That’s when the remaining spending bills come due. And the gymnastics required to pass these bills are expected to become exponentially more difficult.
For starters, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) has long promised not to support any more Band-Aid spending bills. Congress approved four interim spending measures to prevent a government shutdown beyond the fall. Mr. Johnson presided over three of his cases. Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) pushed the original bill in late September last year. His introduction of a stopgap spending bill last fall is exactly what cost Mr. McCarthy his job.
Chairman Mike Johnson remains adamant that border security measures are necessary in exchange for aid to Ukraine.
But Mr Johnson is still here with his leadership unchallenged.
Does it make sense?
not much. But this is where we are.
Johnson found himself on the defensive a few days ago when he and other leaders announced the latest punt. Some angry Republicans claim they learned of the latest mulligan on Twitter or X, but Mr Johnson has called the fourth interim bill a “process CR”. It stands for “continuing resolution,” and it’s an emergency bill that simply renews all funding at current levels to avoid a government shutdown. But no one had ever heard of “process CR” before Johnson introduced it.
Johnson said Republicans would have “72 hours” to debate the six bills as a package. it’s true. But the House passed a bill early Thursday afternoon that simply re-increases the old funding, less than three days after the bill was introduced. House Republicans typically insist on a three-day grace period before voting on bills. However, Prime Minister Johnson scrapped that provision. However, some might argue that there wasn’t much to read into this provision since it merely greenlit old funding.
But CR is CR.
It’s still Congressional putty.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has vowed never to be drawn into interim legislation again.
Therefore, the new term is “Process CR”.
“We are continuing with CR and the same policies we voted against on September 30, the last act of the former Speaker of the House,” said Rep. Bob Good (R-Va.), chairman of the House Freedom Caucus. ” he complained. “I called it a mistake, but I think it was also a terrible decision.”
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The House voted 320-99 Thursday afternoon to avoid the shutdown. But far more Democrats than Republicans supported the plan, as is required in the Republican-controlled House. 207 Democratic members of Congress voted in favor. Only 113 Republicans voted yes. That’s a difference of 94 votes. 97 Republicans voted against the bill. Only two Democrats voted against the bill.
Johnson had the foresight earlier in the day to put yet another CR on the floor.
“The spending process is ugly. Our democracy is ugly,” Johnson said. “It’s been a long road to get here.”
Johnson’s sermons failed to sway Goode.
“Actually, this morning, a Democrat told me, ‘We’re happy that you’re in charge because nothing changes, but you’re responsible for everything,'” Good said.
(Graham Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
But some Republicans argued that was all they could do, given their slim 219-213 majority.
“The American people have won a slim majority in the House of Representatives,” said Rep. Chuck Fleischman (R-Tenn.), chairman of the Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee. “These negotiations have been difficult, but shutting down the government at a time like this hurts people who shouldn’t be hurt.”
There are myriad reasons why Republicans oppose the bridge spending bill. Just the fact that it wasn’t a new bill. Others pointed to the reauthorization of spending approved when former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., wielded the gavel, affirming many of her spending priorities. And then there was the southern border.
“Any continuing resolution requires border controls,” said Rep. Ralph Norman, R.S.C. “So if you’re so afraid of a government shutdown that you don’t risk closing the borders, then you have a problem.”
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Rep. Mike Quigley (D-Ill.) joined Rep. Jake Auchincloss of Massachusetts as the only Democrats to oppose the latest CR. Quigley said he will oppose CR until lawmakers pass a Ukraine aid bill.
“The only way to get attention (to Ukraine) is to travel there,” Quigley said.
And over the weekend, this week’s six-bill composite bill arrived in lawmakers’ mailboxes. The House plans to consider all of these bills at once. House Republicans have been reluctant to pass anything called an “omnibus.” Here, Congressional leaders will piece together all 12 spending bills. The six bills could be considered “minibuses,” but some conservatives may disagree.
WASHINGTON, DC – FEBRUARY 7: Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) arrives for a lunch with Senate Republicans at the U.S. Capitol on February 7, 2024 in Washington, DC. The Senate failed to pass an immigration and border security bill that added foreign aid to Ukraine and Israel, and is working to pass the bill without including the border and immigration elements that Senate Republicans have taken issue with. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images) (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Prime Minister Boris Johnson went on to say that the House of Commons had broken its “omnibus fever”.
For the record, there is no clear definition in Congress of what constitutes an “omnibus” bill and a “minibus” bill. However, it is generally understood that all 12 banknotes are an “omnibus”. Anything less is probably a “minibus”.
Still, Rep. Thomas Massey, Republican of Kentucky, saw the punt coming last week. He predicted Congressional leaders would dump the bill on the floor as one giant bill.
“This is the old way of executives locking themselves up behind closed doors, taking something and disappearing for a few weeks and saying, ‘Take it or leave it,'” Massey said. “There’s no fix. There’s no change. And I think we need to reject that idea.”
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What we haven’t mentioned yet is the second slab of the remaining six spending bills due March 22nd. These include some of the more unpleasant and controversial policy areas. defense. Homeland Security. and Labor/Health and Human Services. The latter two require special attention. Because borders are a big issue. The same goes for recent Alabama Supreme Court decisions regarding abortion and IVF and embryos.
Congress could finally pass a bill to actually fund the government this week. But a bigger test looms later this month. And if lawmakers stumble on their next round of funding, all bets may be off for Mr. Johnson and a potential government shutdown.
