Senators on Wednesday passed a short-term budget extension bill that would keep the government running through mid-December and avert a pre-election shutdown just days before the deadline at the end of the month.
The Senate voted 78-18 to pass a stopgap measure, known as a continuing resolution (CR), that would keep the government's budget at current spending levels through Dec. 20, setting off a holiday debate during the lame-duck session.
The bill will now be sent to President Biden's desk for his signature.
The CR's passage came after House Speaker Mike Johnson's (R-Louisiana) original plan — which combined a six-month spending bill with a measure backed by President Trump that would require proof of citizenship to vote — failed due to opposition from several Republicans. Johnson then resorted to Plan B, negotiating with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-New York).
But in the end, the short-term measure moved forward with few issues as the House rushed through the bill on Wednesday afternoon. The Senate had worked out a timetable for Tuesday night to quickly pass the final bill after Wednesday's House vote.
“Because of the bipartisan choice made by both parties, Congress is getting the job done and the American people can rest assured,” Schumer said on the Senate floor Wednesday morning. “We will keep our government running. We will prevent essential government services from being shut down unnecessarily. And we will give appropriators more time to fully fund the government through the end of the year.”
“And I'm especially pleased that we were able to get the job done with plenty of time to spare,” Schumer added.
The three-month package also includes $231 million for the US Secret Service (USSS) in the wake of the second assassination attempt on former President Trump.
It marks the second day in a row that Congress has passed legislation aimed at beefing up security for President Trump: The Senate unanimously passed a bill on Tuesday that would require the USSS to “apply the same standards” to determine how many agents should be assigned to guard the president, vice president and anyone running for office that is entitled to such protection.
The House passed the stopgap bill early Wednesday morning by a vote of 341 to 82, with all Democrats and 132 Republicans in favor. The vote was moved up to Wednesday afternoon so lawmakers could leave Washington before Hurricane Helen made landfall in Florida.
After hardline opposition parties threatened to block a procedural motion to move the bill forward through the regular process, Johnson was forced to pass the bill under suspension of the rules, with the support of two-thirds of Parliament. Conservatives and hardline parties have used the opportunity to block rules votes to express their dissatisfaction with various legislative efforts.
Johnson's original six-month proposal was opposed by several quarters in the Republican conference, with defense hawks arguing that not increasing military spending for six months would harm the defense, while some fiscal hawks opposed any sort of stopgap measure.
But most people agree that shutting down the government before November would be a big mistake.
“This is not the solution any of us want, but it is the most prudent course under the current circumstances. As history teaches us and current polling proves, shutting down the government with less than 40 days until a fateful election is political malfeasance,” Johnson said as he announced the plan with Schumer on Sunday.
A number of items were omitted from the budget, drawing ire from lawmakers, most notably the SAVE Act, a bill backed by President Trump, who has called on Republicans to shut down the government if Congress doesn't pass a voting bill.
It also excludes relief measures for some parts of the country that have been hit hard in recent months.
Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) spoke on the floor before the vote, pointing out that the bill does not include aid to provide relief to victims of the Maui wildfires, and arguing that this needs to be a priority before the lame-duck session ends on December 20.
“They're waiting for help, but the federal government hasn't helped them yet,” Schatz said. “They've lost loved ones. They've lost their homes. They've lost their businesses. They've lost their livelihoods. All they want is help and just a little bit of hope to get their lives back to somewhat normal.”
The next round of funding fights will also likely be shaped depending on who wins in November, but either way, Republicans are hoping to avoid a huge omnibus spending bill just before Christmas.
Johnson has vowed there will be no omnibus budget – a bold declaration that flies in the face of recent parliamentary history – and said he would not accept minibuses, smaller budgets that consolidate funding for some government departments.
“We've broken the Christmas omnibus, and we're not going to go back to that awful tradition,” Johnson said. “We don't want buses. We're not going to run buses, OK?”
