Following Republican leaders’ betrayal of an earlier bipartisan agreement and changes made to appease President-elect Donald Trump, billionaire Elon Musk, and an internal GOP revolt, the House rejected a bill Thursday to keep the government funded temporarily by a vote of 174-235, with one Democrat present. This was well short of the two-thirds majority required to pass the bill under a fast-track process, with two Democrats voting in favour of it and Rep. Marcy Kaptur, D-Ohio, the only dissenting vote. Thirty-eight Republicans also voted against the bill, with conservatives claiming it did not significantly cut federal spending. With less than 30 hours before the deadline, the defeated measure leaves Congress without a clear plan to prevent an impending government shutdown, increasing the likelihood of a funding lapse right before the holidays. On Saturday, a shutdown is planned to start at 12:01 a.m. ET.
As he departed the Capitol on Thursday evening, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., responded to reporters’ questions about whether a new funding bill would be unveiled on Friday by saying, “We’ll see.”Trump endorsed the failed bill that Johnson and other Republican leaders had drafted, but Democratic leaders quickly opposed it because they hadn’t approved it before it was released. Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., called the proposal “laughable” during a private meeting of House Democrats prior to the vote, during which lawmakers could be heard yelling, “Hell no! Hell no!”Jeffries declared on the House floor before the vote that his party would oppose the package. We will keep fighting for the rights of regular Americans. “We are voting against this bill in order to prevent this rash, regressive, and reactionary Republican shutdown,” he stated.
House Democrats plan to meet Friday morning to discuss government funding, according to an invitation obtained by NBC News.
Johnson, like Musk and the Trump transition team, blamed Democrats for the vote total and offered no explanation for what would happen in the House after the vote.
“It’s a good thing the bill failed in the House,” said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., Thursday night. His chamber still needs to adopt whatever can clear the House and reach President Joe Biden’s desk by the shutdown deadline. It’s time to return to the bipartisan accord that we reached.
The government would have been financed through March 14 under the 116-page bill that was made public Thursday. Additionally, it would have responded to a significant, eleventh-hour crisis by extending the nation’s debt ceiling until January 30, 2027.
“It’s a good thing the bill failed in the House,” said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., Thursday night. His chamber still needs to adopt whatever can clear the House and reach President Joe Biden’s desk by the shutdown deadline. It’s time to return to the bipartisan accord that we reached.
The government would have been financed through March 14 under the 116-page law that was made public Thursday. Additionally, it would have responded to a crucial, last-minute request from Trump by extending the nation’s debt ceiling through January 30, 2027.
Among many other designations, the trimmed-down package included millions of dollars in disaster relief funds for environmental cleanup and construction initiatives in the wake of hurricanes Helene and Milton.
Along with aid for the farming industry, including millions of dollars for conservation initiatives, a watershed protection program, and catastrophe assistance for rural development, it also featured an extension of the farm bill.
Provisions that had angered Trump and his right-wing supporters, such as raising lawmakers’ cost of living and granting Washington, D.C., authority over a stadium location that may be utilized by the Washington Commanders NFL franchise, were not included. Additionally, the Act did not include the health care elements that were agreed upon in the earlier agreement to update the rules pertaining to pharmaceutical benefit managers, or PBMs. On Truth Social, Trump hailed the agreement as a “success” and asked Democrats and Republicans to support it.
“The House and Speaker Mike Johnson have reached a very favorable agreement for the American people. Trump added, “The recently passed American Relief Act of 2024 will support our Great Farmers and others, keep the Government open, and help those who have been badly affected by the devastating hurricanes.”
Along with the majority of Republicans, two Democrats, Reps. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington and Kathy Castor of Florida, voted in favor of the bill Thursday evening.
Less than 36 hours before a deadline to either finance the government or permit a shutdown that would shut down large portions of the federal government and put thousands of workers on furlough, the most recent GOP proposal was made public.
Johnson and his administration have come under fire from Democratic leaders for breaking the terms of the last bipartisan agreement he approved. According to some, it makes the Republican leadership in the House less credible in any upcoming talks. When Trump attacked the bipartisan funding agreement Johnson had secured on Wednesday night, he unpredictably threw a wrench in the funding talks. Months before a deadline to avoid an economically disastrous default next year, he made a last-minute demand: with fewer than two days left before a shutdown deadline, he vowed to take action against Republicans unless they included a clause to increase the debt limit.
Trump went one step farther on Thursday morning, telling NBC News that Congress must completely do away with the debt cap. Trump stated in a phone interview that he will “lead the charge” in the push to remove the debt ceiling, which some Democrats have been calling for years.
According to Jeffries, any discussion about raising or lowering the debt ceiling at this time is “premature at best.”
In response to a reporter’s question Thursday night on whether Republicans will try again on Friday to pass a bill suspending the debt ceiling, Scalise stated that they were “looking at some other options on all the things that we’ve been discussing.”
Among those who criticized Johnson and Republicans for breaking the bipartisan financial agreement that had been finalized just days prior was Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut, the former head of the Appropriations Committee and current top Democrat on the panel.
According to her, a “good agreement” was in progress “but for President Musk.”
When asked if Musk was making decisions for Republicans, DeLauro said, “It would seem to me!”
(Trump told NBC News on Thursday that Musk and he are on the same page and that Musk had only released a series of statements aimed at destroying the bipartisan compromise after they had discussed it.)
On MSNBC, Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., who recently won reelection in a swing district, stated that Republicans require Democratic backing for a measure and that it is “very clear, Donald Trump is in charge.”
“This is a very straightforward reality. Before Thursday’s accord was revealed, Lawler told MSNBC host Andrea Mitchell, “We have to negotiate.” “I’ll remind everyone that our government is divided. However, a bipartisan negotiation will be necessary because Democrats hold both the Senate and the White House.