In Short
- Congress approves a stopgap measure to prevent a partial government shutdown, providing temporary funding and setting up deadlines for future budget negotiations.
- The agreement buys lawmakers more time to finalize full
- Year funding bills and averts immediate funding crises for federal agencies.
TFD – Dive into the latest from Capitol Hill as Congress averts a looming government shutdown with a temporary funding measure. Get insights into the intricacies of the agreement and its implications for future budget negotiations.
A stopgap measure was approved by the House and Senate on Thursday in order to prevent a partial government shutdown at the end of the week.
The temporary legislation will prolong financing and set up two deadlines, March 8 and 22, to give lawmakers more time to complete and approve full-year funding bills. Now, President Joe Biden will sign the bill into law.
There were two shutdown deadlines that Congress had to deal with: March 1 and March 8. If Congress hadn’t passed the stopgap before Friday at the latest, funding for several important federal agencies would have run out.
Republicans voted 320 to 99 in the House, with 113 voting for and 97 voting against. The proposal was voted down by two Democrats. There was a 77-to-13 Senate vote.
The full-year package of bills will be implemented by March 8, according to House leaders, who also announced an agreement on six appropriations measures on Wednesday. The remaining appropriations bills, which support the other federal agencies, will be finished and passed by March 22.
Hardliners quickly pushed back against the idea of passing another short-term funding package, and House Speaker Mike Johnson has been under tremendous pressure from his right flank to fight for conservative victories in the government budget dispute.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Johnson said, “The appropriations process is ugly.” “Democracy is not attractive. Every year, it operates in the same manner as it always has, with the exception of a few new changes. Did we manage to end the omnibus fever? For years, Washington has been managed in this manner. We are attempting to return the aircraft carrier to true spending reform and budgeting. It was crucial that it be divided into manageable chunks.
In a meeting with Republican members of the House on Thursday before the vote, Johnson also defended the way he handled the spending negotiations.
Sources within the meeting claim that Johnson claimed he was compelled to break off the agreement because party disagreements in the GOP have made it impossible for the House to approve a procedural measure known as a rule. Because of this, he must rely on Democrats to enact legislation with a two-thirds majority, which will compel them to make concessions on the budget.
Georgia Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, who plans to vote against the stopgap package, took a jab at the speaker for reaching a compromise with Democrats on government funding.
“Well, I’ve kind of revived the moniker ‘House of Hypocrites,’ as the theme of our conference was the elimination of CRs, minibuses, and omnibuses. She told CNN’s Manu Raju, “And all I heard talked about this morning was that we’re on our third CR… so that we can vote on multiple mini-buses.”
Rep. Byron Donalds of Florida, who is against the speaker’s agreement, described the past six months as “a tough six months.”
He told CNN, “I don’t agree with the package,” and said, “In this game, you have to stack up your strategies and fights.” And I don’t think we succeeded in doing that here.
“Yes, I believe there were better ways to have done it. When questioned about how Johnson has handled the bulk of the work, he told CNN, “But, I mean, you can’t be a Monday morning quarterback on this thing.” “This is where we are.”
Following the historic decision by conservatives last year to remove former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, Johnson was elected speaker. However, it remains to be seen if the Louisiana Republican would ever face a comparable challenge to his speakership.
One of the eight Republicans who voted to remove McCarthy, Rep. Tim Burchett of Tennessee, stated that while he disagreed with the stopgap bill and the larger budget agreement, he was understanding of Johnson’s situation.
Naturally, I haven’t cast a ballot for a CR. Although I believe that passing a budget is necessary, the truth is that no one wants to do it. He also has a majority of one vote. He is now pressed against the wall. He’s going to have to make a tough decision. I support him. I don’t necessarily support the CR,” he told CNN. “The reality is that he’s working hard and he’s just doing what he can do.”
The departments of Agriculture-FDA, Commerce-Justice and Science, Energy and Water Development, Interior, Military Construction-Veterans Affairs, and Transportation-Housing and Urban Development are among the six funding bills that lawmakers have come to an agreement on and intend to pass before March 8.
Defense, Financial Services and General Government, Homeland Security, Labor-Health and Human Services, the Legislative Branch, and State and Foreign Operations are the remaining six appropriations measures that senators want to vote on before March 22.
More developments have been added to this story and headline.
Manu Raju and Lauren Fox of CNN both contributed to this story.
Conclusion
As Congress successfully navigates around a potential government shutdown, the temporary funding measure sets the stage for further budget negotiations. The agreement highlights the complexities of legislative processes and the ongoing efforts to ensure the smooth functioning of government operations. Stay tuned for more updates on Capitol Hill’s budget deliberations.
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