Race against time: Congress has 11 legislative days to pass stopgap bill or face a
There are a limited number of legislative days left for Congress to pass a stopgap funding bill or the government will plunge into a shutdown.
An easy deal isn’t likely amid GOP infighting about sending more aid to Ukraine and regarding timing for opening an impeachment inquiry into President Biden, which is poised to derail negotiations.
There are 12 annual government spending bills that must be passed by both the House and Senate before funding runs out at midnight on Sept. 30.
However, to give lawmakers more time to push through the longer term 2024 spending bills, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is working on pushing a stopgap measure known as a ‘continuing resolution’ likely through the end of November or early December to stave off a shutdown.
The CR is supported by Senate Leader Chuck Schumer who called it the way to ‘work this out,’ last month.
But there are only a total of 11 legislative days left on the calendar for Congress to pass the stopgap bill to keep the government temporarily funded.
Kevin McCarthy and Mitch McConnell must work to get a deal on government funding through by Sept. 30
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said last week in Kentucky that he believes there will be a ‘short-term congressional resolution’ that will likely go into December ‘as we struggle to figure out exactly what the government’s spending level is going to be.’
A bill funding military construction and Veterans Affairs projects passed the House before the body left for a month-long hiatus, leaving 11 more bills to move along.
All spending bills originate in the House and then are moved over to the Senate.
House lawmakers are returning from their August recess on Tuesday and are expected to first take up the massive $886 billion defense spending bill.
The issue of sending more aid to Ukraine will be at the center of negotiations.
President Biden has requested Congress approve an additional $40 billion – including $13 billion in emergency defense aid, $8 billion for humanitarian aid to Ukraine, $12 billion in disaster relief and $4 billion for the border to combat fentanyl smuggling.
The White House is urging Congress to pass the stopgap measure in order to avoid a shutdown while negotiations on passing the larger 12 longer term spending bills continue.
But Ukraine aid is a sticking point that is shaking up the process.
McCarthy has reportedly indicated that the House will attach disaster aid to the stopgap bill, but will not include additional funding for Ukraine.
However, the Senate has strong bipartisan support for sending more funds to the war torn country, and is likely to put pressure on the House to include more aid.
Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, told Punchbowl News this week that he ‘understands’ that McCarthy needs to pass a bill, but the Senate will send back any piece of legislation without Ukraine aid.
‘We’re going to have to work that out,’ the Senate leader said this week.
In addition, the House Freedom Caucus members said in August that they will oppose any spending bill that gives Ukraine a ‘blank check’ in U.S. taxpayer-funded aid.
They say they will also vote against a measure that doesn’t include provisions to address DOJ ‘weaponization’ and targeting of political opponents and the Pentagon’s ‘woke policies.’
And they want major billion dollar cuts to the appropriations bills because they are still disgruntled at the debt ceiling bill, which did not curb spending to their satisfaction.
McCarthy cannot afford to lose more than four votes from Republicans in his slim GOP majority, so he must strike a deal with the Freedom Caucus, which isn’t afraid to shut down the government.
Rep. Chris Stewart, R-Utah, is stepping down from Congress at the end of the week to due to family concerns. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., is battling bone cancer and not expected to return to the Hill for a few months. In addition, Rep. Frank Lucas, R-Okla., had hip surgery recently and Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., is dealing with a handful of legal issues.
Even if the government shuts down, around 85 percent will still be in operation. For the employees not considered ‘essential,’ they will be paid once the government reopens.
The longest shutdown – lasting over a month – occurred during Trump’s presidency due to disagreement on border wall funding.
Another issue at play is some farther right House conservatives that say they will not support any government funding measure without an impeachment inquiry into President Biden and his connections to his family’s business dealings.
That is ruffling the feathers of more moderate Republicans who say they shouldn’t be tied together.
‘They’re totally separate issues and should be considered separately,’ said Rep. Bob Good of Virginia this week.
Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., has threatened to remove McCarthy from his speakership position if an impeachment inquiry into Biden isn’t launched.
The lawmaker urged his GOP colleagues to ‘seize the initiative’ in investigating the 80-year-old president when they return to Washington next week.
He also said McCarthy ‘may not have the job long’ if he ‘stands in the way’ of pushing for a Congressional trial into Biden’s links to his son Hunter’s foreign business deals.
Firebrand Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia also promised to vote against funding the government if impeaching proceedings had not begun.
There are 12 annual government spending bills that must be passed by both the House and Senate before funding runs out at midnight on Sept. 30
McCarthy has said an impeachment inquiry into Joe’s connections to Hunter’s foreign dealings is on the table
And House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., said last week that an impeachment inquiry is ‘imminent.’
McCarthy has said an impeachment inquiry into Joe’s connections to Hunter’s foreign dealings is on the table.
He said if the Biden administration continue to ‘withhold’ documents, Republicans will ‘move forward with impeachment inquiry when we come back into session.’
The White House has rejected every suggestion Joe was involved in his son Hunter’s business deals and insists the Biden impeachment push is politically motivated.
But a new poll released this week showed that 61 percent of Americans believe then-Vice President Joe was involved at some level in his son’s dealings.