“House Faces Crucial Vote as Senate Passes Stopgap Funding, Speaker’s Leadership Tested Amidst Bipartisan Challenges”

Senate effortlessly approves a short-term spending bill to prevent a government shutdown this week. The 77-18 vote sets the stage for House consideration on Thursday, with expectations of smooth bipartisan approval under suspension of the rules.

The approved legislation extends funding for agencies covered by four appropriations bills until March 1 and the remaining eight bills until March 8. Senate leaders’ agreement on Wednesday required 60 votes for passage. Lawmakers aim for this to be the final stopgap in fiscal 2024, following two previous continuing resolutions. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) reached a $1.66 trillion topline agreement, with defense spending over 3% higher than the previous fiscal year, and nondefense spending held flat. Appropriators, led by Senate’s Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and House’s Kay Granger (R-Texas), are determining how to allocate the topline among the twelve annual bills, prompting impatience among other appropriators awaiting their allocations.

Before approving the stopgap bill, the Senate dismissed a Republican amendment and motion, voting 44-50 against Sen. Rand Paul’s proposal. The amendment sought to halt federal assistance to entities in the West Bank and Gaza unless they met conditions, including recognizing Israel’s right to exist and renouncing terrorism. Paul argued against rewarding “barbarism” with taxpayer dollars, while Sen. Benjamin Cardin opposed it, stating it would deny critical supplies to innocent Palestinians. The amendment required a 60-vote threshold for adoption but did not garner enough support.

The Senate initially planned to vote on Sen. Mike Braun’s amendment for estimating executive order impacts on inflation, but the vote was bypassed. Sen. Roger Marshall then proposed sending the legislation back to the Appropriations Committee for a full-year continuing resolution instead. A yearlong CR, under last year’s debt limit suspension law, could lead to up to $73 billion in nondefense spending cuts, as per the Congressional Budget Office. Marshall argued for fiscal responsibility, but most senators disagreed, rejecting his motion with a 13-82 vote.

Senate Approves Stopgap Funding Extension Amid Speaker Johnson’s Challenges

The House is anticipated to address the imminent bill between 4:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m., according to Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.). Facing resistance from House Republicans on short-term spending measures, Speaker Johnson requires substantial Democratic support to secure the necessary two-thirds majority for legislation passage under suspension. Despite internal threats to his speakership over bipartisan dealings, Johnson steers clear of amending the continuing resolution (CR) with the House’s partisan border security package. A conservative faction, led by House Freedom Caucus Chairman Bob Good (R-Va.), urges the inclusion of border security text without mandating E-Verify use by employers. Johnson resists, fearing a shutdown as lawmakers prepare to leave, and the Senate’s lack of appetite for the House GOP border bill.

Johnson’s deputy chief of staff, Raj Shah, reaffirms the unchanged plan for the House to vote on the stopgap measure to avert a government shutdown. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) asserts her opposition, stating that presenting a Senate-brokered immigration and Ukraine funding package would be her breaking point. Criticisms focus on Johnson’s compliance with spending levels from the last Democratic-controlled Congress.

The upcoming weeks hold critical significance for Johnson as the Senate progresses on the border and supplemental war funding package. Concurrently, appropriators negotiate full-year spending bills, with Democrats pledging avoidance of controversial conservative policy riders. Senate Majority Leader Schumer hopes for increased bipartisanship once the shutdown threat subsides. Schumer emphasizes the goal of swiftly advancing the national security supplemental after averting a shutdown. Despite challenges, Schumer believes there’s a slightly better than 50 percent chance of achieving progress on the border and war-funding package.

David Lerman and Nina Heller contribute to this comprehensive report on the Senate’s approval of the stopgap funding extension into March, marking a pivotal juncture in legislative proceedings. The intricate dynamics within the House, Senate, and Speaker Johnson’s leadership underscore the delicate balance required to navigate critical fiscal decisions.