House Republican leaders on Sunday unveiled a second plan to avert a government shutdown, opting to remove key provisions of the first plan that Democrats strongly opposed.
of House Republican Leadership's New Plan It would postpone any fight over the government's budget until after the presidential election, just before Congress goes on its Christmas recess, and keep spending at current levels until December 20th.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) had previously supported a longer, six-month continuing resolution to fund the government through March 28. His original plan combined the spending supplement with the Protecting American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, which would require voters to show proof of citizenship.
Democrats have called the SAVE Act a failure, and the original version of the plan was defeated in the House of Representatives last week.
“While this is not the solution any of us would want, it is the most prudent course under the current circumstances,” Johnson wrote in a letter to colleagues. “History teaches us, and current polls prove, that shutting down the government with less than 40 days until a fateful election would be an act of political malfeasance.”
A vote on Johnson's Plan B to stave off a government shutdown could come as early as Wednesday, which also includes more than $231 million in funding for the Secret Service.
Last Wednesday, 14 House Republicans joined the Democratic majority in rejecting the original CR bill.
Former President Donald Trump had pleaded with Republicans to stick with the SAVE Act, even if it meant a confrontation that would trigger a government shutdown.
Republican leaders were eager to avoid a potentially politically damaging government shutdown before the Nov. 5 election and to avoid Congress' near-customary fight over holiday spending.
However, members of the House Republican Conference strongly opposed the original CR and were eager to extract firmer concessions from Democrats, particularly on spending levels.
Even if the original CR had passed the House, it would have faced stiff opposition from the Democratic-controlled Senate and the White House.
“Democrats will jointly evaluate the entire spending bill prior to its consideration on the floor of the House. Congress is currently on a bipartisan path to avoid a government shutdown,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., said in a statement about the new CR plan.
Congress has a deadline of midnight on September 30th to keep the government running and avoid a shutdown.
That's because Congress is tasked with funding the government for each new fiscal year that begins on Oct. 1. Under normal procedure, Congress would introduce a package of 12 spending bills. But if Congress chooses to buy time, it will use the temporary CR measure.
The spending dispute will be a key test for Johnson, whose fight over government funding led to the ouster of his predecessor, former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), last fall.
Already, some hard-line Republicans have slammed Johnson over his government funding plans.
Johnson survived a motion to remove him from his position as speaker in May from Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) after he introduced a bill to replenish aid for war-torn Ukraine. Democrats came to his rescue.
But Democrats have not promised to bail Johnson out in the future if House Republicans rebel again, and GOP infighting could give Johnson an uphill battle to retain his leadership position in the next Congress.
The House is scheduled to adjourn by the end of the week, but that could change.
