The GOP-led House passed a short-term spending bill on Tuesday to avert a government shutdown before the deadline at the end of the week.
Democrats joined with Republicans to approve the measure to suspend the rules and send the legislation to the Senate — a move that avoided a Rules Committee showdown, but required a two-thirds majority to succeed. The final tally was 336-95, with 209 Democrats and 127 Republicans voting for it.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), who has held the role less than a month, backed the two-step continuing resolution (CR) that funds certain federal agencies through the middle of January while others would get money through early February.
The bill did not include spending cuts, which made it more palatable to Democrats, and did not attach supplemental funds for pressing national security matters that GOP leadership aims to tackle separately. If approved by the Senate and then signed by President Joe Biden, the measure will give lawmakers more time to hash out full-year spending bills.
“This two-step continuing resolution is a necessary bill to place House Republicans in the best position to fight for conservative victories. The bill will stop the absurd holiday-season omnibus tradition of massive, loaded up spending bills introduced right before the Christmas recess,” Johnson said in a post to X on Tuesday.
“Separating out the CR from the supplemental funding debates places our conference in the best position to fight for fiscal responsibility, oversight over Ukraine aid, and meaningful policy changes at our Southern border,” he added.
Conservative Republicans, including members of the Freedom Caucus, opposed the measure because it did not rein in spending as the U.S. national debt approaches $34 trillion.
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“Today, I voted against a continuing resolution (CR) that continues inflationary deficit spending, fails to secure a single policy victory for the American people, won the praise of the leader of the House Progressive Caucus, was jammed through over conservative objections via suspension of the rules, and impedes Republicans’ future fights on critical issues like border security,” said Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX).
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) have indicated that they support the House GOP plan — a sign that it will pass the upper chamber — and while the White House has been critical of the proposal, Biden has not ruled out signing it.
Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) got voted out as speaker last month after he pushed through a 45-day continuing resolution, which similarly passed with bipartisan support, but did not take the “laddered” approach. That stop-gap measure expires at the end of the day Friday.