A Democratic effort to pass a bill paying active-duty military members during the government shutdown was blocked on the House floor Friday by the GOP.
The presiding Republican, Rep. Mike Bost of Illinois, gaveled a brief pro forma session to a close before Rep. Sarah Elfreth (D-Md.) could make a procedural move to try to pass the legislation by unanimous consent.
Bost said after the session he didn’t allow Elfreth to move forward because the House was in a “perfunctory” session and he was “representing the speaker.”
“Sometimes, when you stand at the helm [it] doesn’t necessarily mean you’re in charge of the ship,” Bost said.
Speaker Mike Johnson has said repeatedly in recent days that the onus is on Senate Democrats to pass the stopgap spending bill the House approved last month and has ruled out a troop-pay standalone. President Donald Trump’s administration has been weighing options to continue paying military service members without requiring any additional congressional action.
The House has not been in full session since Sept. 19. Since then, Democrats have tried to take advantage of the brief pro forma sessions to try to swear in Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva (D-Ariz.), who won a special election last month. Hill Republicans have said she’ll be sworn in when the House is back in session.
Meredith Lee Hill contributed to this report
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