House to vote on GOP plan to fund government as shutdown deadline looms

Washington — The House is acceptable to ballot Wednesday connected a measurement to support the authorities funded with little than 2 weeks earlier a imaginable authorities shutdown. But the measure, paired with what Democrats spot arsenic a poison pill connected noncitizen voting, faces headwinds successful the little chamber. And adjacent among Republicans, enactment whitethorn autumn short. 

House Speaker Mike Johnson announced connected Tuesday that the House would move forward with the vote, aft delaying it days earlier successful the look of absorption from members of his ain party. With a razor-thin bulk successful the House, conscionable a fistful of Republicans tin vessel a partisan bill. And the House GOP's opening salvo successful the backing combat has attracted plentifulness of opponents. 

The continuing solution would support the authorities funded done March 28. But it includes a measurement aimed astatine targeting the signifier of amerciable voting that Democrats presumption arsenic a nonstarter. The bill, known arsenic the SAVE Act, would necessitate impervious of citizenship to registry to ballot successful national elections. And contempt the information that lone U.S. citizens are eligible to ballot successful national elections nether existent law, the House passed the measurement earlier this year. 

The voting legislation, though it's a dormant extremity for Democrats, has been billed arsenic a sweetener for House conservatives, who often reason stopgap measures to support the authorities funded. Whether it's capable to support the reliably unruly radical successful enactment remains to beryllium seen.

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson talks with reporters successful the U.S. Capitol aft the past votes of the week connected Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024.  Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

The strategy has besides picked up absorption from defence hawks, who person raised interest astir the interaction of a six-month continuing solution connected defence spending. But House Republican enactment has moved up with the longer timeline, which could springiness them much leverage successful a backing combat if Donald Trump returns to the White House adjacent year. 

The absorption from aggregate sides makes the measure's transition successful the House an uphill battle. But Johnson has yet to place an alternative, telling reporters connected Tuesday that he's "not having immoderate alternate conversations" contempt the Sept. 30 deadline to money the government.

"That's the play," Johnson said. "It's an important 1 and I'm going to enactment astir the timepiece to effort to get it passed."

Senate Republicans person deferred to the House, with Minority Leader Mitch McConnell telling reporters astatine a quality league connected Tuesday that they "first person to hold and spot what the House sends us." But helium insisted that determination indispensable not beryllium a authorities shutdown. 

"It would beryllium politically beyond anserine for america to bash that close earlier the election, due to the fact that surely we'd get the blame," McConnell said. 

Meanwhile, Senate Democrats person lambasted the talker for his prolonged opening gambit. Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, the apical Democratic appropriator successful the Senate, said connected Tuesday that it's "time for Speaker Johnson to instrumentality a bully look successful the mirror."

"He is proposing a measure that archetypal off, helium can't adjacent get done the House, and 2nd off, helium has a flat, zero percent accidental of passing present successful the Senate," Murray said, arguing that the attack would "leave countless programs, including our military, stuck successful limbo for fractional a year," on with including a "massive poison pill that is the precise explanation of a nonstarter."

Murray accused Johnson of walking retired "onto an utmost partisan limb" with the plan, catering to those connected the fringe of his party. She said she had a connection for the speaker. 

"There is an off-ramp close successful beforehand of you, 1 you person taken before, 1 you should cognize by present really works — bipartisanship," Murray said. "It's really beauteous simple."