The House Rules Committee on Monday opted against voting on a short-term spending bill that would avert a government shutdown, setting the stage for a scenario in which House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) will need to rely on Democrats to pass the contentious measure.
Johnson’s three month continuing resolution, which would keep the government funded through Dec. 20, was expected to be among a slate of bills approved by the GOP-controlled rules committee Monday night but it was not brought up for consideration after multiple Republicans expressed opposition to the measure.
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), a member of the rules committee, argued that the House speaker was attempting to “set up a government funding crisis the week before Christmas” to pressure lawmakers to vote for a bill that would be written “behind closed doors.”
“Why Christmas? So he can pressure Members to vote for a bill they haven’t read, by using their desire to see their families on Christmas Eve against them,” the Kentucky Republican wrote on X.
“We should fund the whole thing for a year,” Massie said of his preferred route.
Without a rule, House GOP leadership is expected to bring the spending bill to the floor under a procedure known as suspension of the rules, which requires a two-thirds majority vote to pass.
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) indicated that the plan is to bring the continuing resolution, or CR, up for a vote on Wednesday, according to CBS News.
The Republican caucus has a slim majority in the House, meaning that several Democrats will need to support the three-month CR for it to pass.
Johnson, 52, unveiled his Plan B spending plan on Sunday, after the House rejected his first proposal – which tied a six-month CR with a measure requiring voters to show proof of citizenship to cast ballots.
“While this is not the solution any of us prefer, it is the most prudent path forward under the present circumstances,” Johnson wrote in a letter to colleagues. “As history has taught and current polling affirms, shutting the government down less than 40 days from a fateful election would be an act of political malpractice.”
Fourteen House Republicans joined a majority of Democrats to vote down that original CR last Wednesday, which would’ve faced stiffed opposition in the Senate if it had passed.
