Republican leaders vowed Wednesday to barrel forward with a stopgap funding bill in the coming days as Democrats threatened to oppose it in favor of their own alternative — raising the chances for an Oct. 1 government shutdown.
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise told reporters Wednesday morning that a vote on the GOP-written bill unveiled Tuesday is expected “likely Friday” amid Democratic objections about a lack of bipartisan negotiations.
“We’re going to do our job, and that’s all we can do, is do our job,” he said. “If Democrats want to shut the government down and continue to hold America hostage because they don’t like the results of the election, the American people are fed up with that kind of childish politics.”
While House GOP leaders have pushed their members for earlier action, they believe Friday morning is the likeliest option for the vote. Hard-liners and others are pushing leaders to stick to the chamber’s 72-hour-review rule.
GOP leaders are also still working to win the votes of several undecided Republicans, including Rep. Warren Davidson (R-Ohio), but are confident they are on track to pass the measure by the end of the week. “Like any big vote, they’re always tight,” Scalise said Wednesday.
Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.), chair of the hard-right House Freedom Caucus, said in a brief interview he was expecting a “Friday morning” vote, saying that was “close enough” to fulfilling the 72-hour rule. GOP leaders have privately acknowledged a Thursday vote could cost them votes among hard-liners, and they can’t afford to lose many Republicans with Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) already a hard “no.”
“I suspect leadership knows it’s easier to get guys to a yes when we’re following the rules than not,” said another Republican involved in the conversations granted anonymity to speak candidly.
Senate Republicans, who want to act quickly on the House bill, are closely watching the House action as they plan their own schedule.
If the House votes Friday, the earliest the Senate would be able to vote is Monday. While voting on Thursday could theoretically move up that schedule a day, a number of Republican senators want to attend activist Charlie Kirk’s funeral Sunday, making a vote that day unlikely.
Furthermore, according to two people granted anonymity to discuss chamber scheduling, senators are not eager to return Monday only to leave again for an already scheduled recess for Rosh Hashanah. Instead, senators would likely return next Thursday, after the Jewish holiday, the people said.
The scheduling conflicts come as the Sept. 30 funding expiration looms and as Senate Democrats threaten to use the chamber’s filibuster rule to block the GOP stopgap.
“In the Senate, it takes 60 votes,” Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Wednesday. “So that means Republicans will need to work with us. If they can’t even bother to have a conversation with Democrats, then it’s Republicans who the American people will know are causing a shutdown in two weeks.”
Senate Majority Leader John Thune reiterated Wednesday that Republicans see nothing to negotiate on the “clean” stopgap, which would extend current funding through Nov. 21. “These guys are trying to take a hostage here,” he said.
Speaker Mike Johnson, asked about the prospect of Senate Democrats blocking the House stopgap, said in a brief interview Tuesday that he hoped that wouldn’t happen.
“There would be no reason to, because it’s clean and short term.” Asked if he would work on a backup plan in that case, he replied, “We’re going to see what happens.”
But House Appropriations Chair Tom Cole signaled some support Wednesday for Republicans working on a Plan B if Senate Democrats do block the GOP-led stopgap as they’re threatening.
“I certainly would,” Cole said in a brief interview, but he acknowledged it was “a leadership decision.”
Cole, asked if the talks could be salvaged at that point to stave off a shutdown, replied, “I don’t know.”
The comments came as tensions between normally cordial appropriators appear to be reaching a breaking point. Senate Appropriations Vice Chair Patty Murray (D-Wash.) on Tuesday accused Cole of having “pulled out” of bipartisan talks and “produced a one-sided CR.”
“Where are the Republican leaders?” Murray said. “If Republicans can’t even sit down with [Democratic leaders] to simply have a conversation, then they cannot govern.”
Cole retorted Wednesday that Democrats were threatening to oppose a stopgap funding bill “they asked for” and are now planning to unveil their own alternative that adds on health care provisions and other measures GOP leaders are opposing.
“We gave them the time frame and a clean bill, now they’re wanting to put other things in,” he said, adding that health care and other issues Democrats want to tackle “ought to be dealt with in separate discussions.”
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