Government Shutdown Updates: House Sends Funding Bill to Senate Before Saturday Deadline
The Senate passed funding for pediatric cancer after it was stripped out of the original bipartisan deal. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-VA, obtained unanimous consent via voice vote for funding for the Gabriella Miller Kids First Research Act 2.0 on the floor tonight. The legislation reauthorizes funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for pediatric cancer after it was stripped out of the original bipartisan deal on Wednesday. The bill reauthorizes through FY2028 a pediatric disease research initiative within NIH and requires the NIH to coordinate pediatric research activities to avoid duplicative efforts. The legislation passed the House in March and has been sitting in the Senate since. Democrats in the House and Senate have criticized Republicans over the last few days for taking out key provisions from the bipartisan deal, most notably pediatric cancer funding. However, the legislation that passed the Senate tonight is not exactly the same as the language in the original deal and is ultimately less money overall, per Kaine.
Senate Working to Lock Down a Time Agreement to Pass Funding Bill Tonight
The government funding bill is finally in senators’ hands, and members of the upper chamber are currently working to get a time agreement to pass the continuing resolution tonight. They will need the consent of all 100 senators to speed up the clock and pass a stopgap bill to avert a shutdown by midnight tonight. “We’re working through the amendment process right now,” Schumer said when asked whether there will be a vote before midnight. There will likely be a series of amendment votes in order for them to get an agreement, but those amendments are expected to fail. If they were adopted, the House would have to come back to vote on the amended legislation. If the Senate rolled past the midnight deadline, the shutdown would likely only be for a couple of hours and have minimal impact on the functions of the federal government. The Senate is also working on the Social Security Fairness Act, which it could loop into the same time agreement and pass tonight.
Jeffries Says House Democrats ‘Stopped Extreme MAGA Republicans’ in Continuing Resolution Vote
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., said that it was House Democrats who “successfully funded the government” in a “victory for the American people.” “House Democrats have successfully stopped extreme MAGA Republicans from shutting down the government, crashing the economy and hurting working-class Americans all across the land,” Jeffries said in remarks after the continuing resolution vote tonight. Speaker Mike Johnson says he is ‘grateful’ that the House did ‘the right thing’. Shortly after the funding bill passed the House, Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters that he was “grateful” that members of Congress passed the CR. “We encourage swift passage in the Senate now,” he said. “They need to do their job as the House just did.” Johnson added that he spoke with Trump and Musk recently as well. Trump “knew exactly what we were doing and why, and — and this is a good outcome for the country. I think he certainly is happy about this outcome as well,” Johnson said. When asked by NBC News whether Johnson still wants to be the House speaker, Johnson said that his job “is a challenge in this modern era, but it’s a challenge that we accept.” “It’s a great honor to serve in the position,” he said. “I wouldn’t say it’s the most fun job in the world all the time, but it’s an important one, a hugely consequential moment for the country.”
Schumer says he’s ‘confident’ the Senate will pass the House CR
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement following the House vote passing the CR that he’s “confident” the Senate will also pass the measure. “Though this bill does not include everything Democrats fought for, there are major victories in this bill for American families — provide emergency aid for communities battered by natural disasters, no debt ceiling, and it will keep the government open with no draconian cuts,” he said. “As I have said, the only way to keep the government open is through bipartisanship,” he added. The Senate must follow the House and pass the bill in order to send it to Biden’s desk and stave off a shutdown.
House Passes Government Funding Bill
The House voted to pass a new bill to fund the government, a step forward in efforts to avoid a government shutdown. The Senate will have to pass the bill as well. The White House says that Biden supports the new funding bill. Biden supports the new bill to fund the government, which Congress is currently voting on, according to the White House. “President Biden supports moving this legislation forward and ensuring that the vital services the government provides for hardworking Americans — from issuing Social Security checks to processing benefits for veterans — can continue as well as to grant assistance for communities that were impacted by devastating hurricanes,” said White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre in a statement. The House is voting now on a new CR. The House is voting now on the new continuing resolution. While it says it is a 15-minute vote, that is not firm. The House can keep a vote open as long as needed until the speaker decides to close it. This bill is under suspension of the rules so it needs 2/3 support to pass. If all current 430 members are present, that number of votes needed is 287. But if just the 410 members who voted yesterday are there, it’s 274. Democrats are still in their caucus meeting, so this vote could take some time. House Democrats will meet to discuss imminent vote. As the House prepares to vote in the next hour on the new bill, House Democrats are holding a 5 p.m. caucus meeting to discuss how they will approach the situation, two sources familiar told NBC News. The House will vote on a new plan in the 5 p.m. hour. The House will convene at approximately 5 p.m. to vote on a new plan to fund the government. It will require a two-thirds majority to pass. Federal firefighters say a shutdown could threaten their battle for higher pay. Federal wildland firefighters are bracing to lose their $20,000 retention bonuses if Congress does not act to prevent a government shutdown. The firefighters have fought for years to establish a permanent pay fix for a job in which some earn as little as $15 an hour for dangerous, backbreaking work. “These folks deserve a living wage. The future is going to be a tough road ahead,” said Steve Gutierrez, a former member of an elite hotshot crew who left the U.S. Forest Service after 15 years to advocate on behalf of firefighters. Read more here. McConnell criticizes House lawmakers over looming shutdown. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., this afternoon criticized the House for taking Congress to the brink of another government shutdown. “I don’t care to count how many times I’ve reminded our colleagues and our House counterparts how harmful it is to shut the government down and how foolish it is to bet your own side won’t take the blame for it,” McConnell said in his last floor speech as Senate Republican leader. He also urged bipartisanship, noting that “getting a legislative outcome in the Senate requires large majorities of people who don’t share all the same views to actually work together toward outcomes where they do see eye to eye.” “We have a choice: Do nothing, or try to find things we agree on and do them together,” he said. Here’s how a shutdown could affect a new Congress and Trump’s inauguration. Reporting from Washington, Trump won’t be sworn in for another month, but a possible government shutdown is raising questions in Washington about how a funding lapse could affect the opening of the next Congress, the certification of Trump’s election and his inauguration. The short answer: probably not much. That’s because the employees and functions that support the constitutional duties of the president and Congress — as well as life and property — are exempted from lapses in service. Read the full story here. Speaker Johnson told lawmakers they’ll vote within ’90 minutes’. Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., told Republicans at the end of their closed-door meeting that they’d vote on a government funding plan in the next hour and a half, according to two lawmakers in the room. “We’re going to the floor within the next 90 minutes,” the speaker told them. The vote on the funding package, which also will include disaster aid and a farm bill, will be the last of 2024. And lawmakers are anxious to get back home for the holidays. House expected to vote this afternoon on new funding package. The House is expected to vote this afternoon on a package that will include the continuing resolution, a farm bill extension and disaster and agriculture relief. The bills will not be separated, as outlined in the previous plan. The package will likely be put on the House floor under suspension of the rules, requiring a two-thirds majority vote — meaning Johnson will need Democrats to pass the package. Johnson, who already spoke to President-elect Trump once today as NBC News reported, is expected to brief Trump on the new plan before a vote is called. Smithsonian museums and the National Zoo can remain open for five days in a government shutdown. The Smithsonian advised this afternoon that they have enough prior-year funds to remain open for at least five days if the government shuts down tonight. House Republicans confident they can vote on a government funding package today. House Republicans leaving the closed-door meeting appeared confident they could vote today on a short-term spending bill, disaster aid and farm bill package — and no debt limit. They would likely vote under suspension of the rules, which means Republicans would need Democratic support. Speaker Johnson: ‘We will not have a government shutdown’. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., came out of the conference meeting and expressed confidence that there won’t be a government shutdown at 12:01 a.m. tomorrow. “We have a unified Republican Conference. We have unanimous agreement in the room that we need to move forward. I will not telegraph to you the specific details of that yet,” he said. “We will not have a government shutdown and we will meet our obligations for our farmers who need aid, for the disaster victims all over the country, and for making sure that military and essential services and everyone that relies on the federal government for a paycheck is paid over the holidays,” he added. GOP Rep. Ralph Norman says House speaker asked for a ‘show of hands’ on funding options. Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., came out of the closed-door GOP conference meeting and said Republicans are considering two options to fund the government. The first would be that the House would pass a short-term bill under the suspension of the rules and the other would require a rule that would then lead to floor votes on disaster aid, farm relief and a short-term bill to keep the government funded. Norman, a member of the House Rules Committee, said his panel may meet at midnight tonight to vote on such a rule if Republicans pursue that option. He said Speaker Mike Johnson was inside the conference meeting asking rank-and-file members for a “show of hands” to gauge support for each option. Norman, however, said a lot of Republicans were missing from the meeting and as a result, Johnson has “a job cut out” for him. Majority Leader Steve Scalise says no consensus, funding vote possible today. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., briefly emerged from the ongoing closed-door House GOP conference meeting and said that there could be a “technical shutdown” as no final decisions have been made but a vote is still “possible” tonight. He said that the most likely plan is to move the three bills, including the continuing resolution, separately but added that they are still discussing what to do about Trump’s debt limit demand. “It wouldn’t necessarily be in this package,” Scalise added. “The debt limit was taken out because the Democrats walked away from that last night.” Scalise, like Rep. Dusty Johnson, acknowledged there could be at least a brief, technical shutdown. “There may be a technical shutdown over the course of the evening or the weekend. Those generally don’t mean anything,” Johnson said. However, Scalise said a vote is still possible tonight, saying “we can stave that off.” GOP Rep. Dusty Johnson says there could be ‘a technical shutdown’ over the weekend. Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-S.D., told MSNBC after stepping out from the closed-door GOP conference meeting that there could be a shutdown but that it would last no longer than the weekend. “There may be a technical shutdown over the course of the evening or the weekend,” he said. “Those generally don’t mean anything. I mean, nobody gets furloughed. Nothing really happens to shut down the government if there is a few-hour lapse.” Johnson also criticized Congress for delaying the passage of a funding package. “If we did our work a month ago or six months ago or 10 years ago, we wouldn’t be in such an uncomfortable position today,” he said. Millions of people could go without primary health care if the government shuts down. Jessica Herzberg, a Transportation Security Administration officer at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport and union official, expressed concern about the financial impact of a government shutdown on federal employees like herself. Herzberg fears that a government shutdown could be financially devastating for her family and her rank-and-file members. She highlighted the challenges faced by TSA employees who are considered essential workers and are required to work without pay during a shutdown. Herzberg emphasized the financial burden on federal employees living paycheck-to-paycheck, especially during the holiday season. She shared stories of union members discussing returning or pawning holiday presents to make ends meet during a shutdown. Herzberg expressed frustration towards Trump and Musk, who effectively derailed the bipartisan funding bill that would have funded the government through March. Herzberg criticized the influence of external factors on legislative decisions, questioning the impact on federal employees and their families. McConnell criticizes House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., for his leadership in the face of a looming government shutdown. McConnell urged bipartisanship and collaboration to avoid the harmful effects of a government shutdown on federal employees and the economy. He emphasized the importance of working together across party lines to find common ground and pass necessary legislation to fund the government. McConnell expressed confidence in the Senate’s ability to pass the funding bill and avert a shutdown. Schumer demands Republicans return to the original agreement and collaborate with Democrats to avoid a government shutdown. Schumer called on Republicans to honor the original bipartisan deal negotiated with Democrats to fund the government and provide critical emergency aid to American families. He urged Republicans to work with Democrats to pass the bipartisan CR and prevent a government shutdown. Schumer emphasized the importance of bipartisanship and cooperation to ensure the government remains open and serves the needs of the American people. Rules Committee to meet on how to tackle a funding plan. Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., announced that the Rules Committee will convene to address the funding plan and ensure a resolution to fund the government. Norman highlighted the importance of procedural work-arounds to facilitate the passage of the new plan and avoid a government shutdown. The Rules Committee will provide guidance and direction on the legislative process to advance the funding bill in a timely manner. GOP Rep. Dusty Johnson calls on Trump to come to Washington to assist with funding negotiations. Johnson urged Trump to travel to Washington and engage in negotiations to resolve the funding impasse and prevent a government shutdown. He emphasized the need for strong leadership and collaboration to address the challenges facing federal employees and the economy. Johnson expressed confidence in Trump’s ability to facilitate discussions and reach a resolution on the funding bill. Congress scrambles to avoid a government shutdown before the holidays. Lawmakers are working diligently to reach a funding agreement and avoid a government shutdown before the holiday season. The urgency to pass a funding bill stems from the potential impact on federal employees, essential services, and the economy in the event of a shutdown. Lawmakers are focused on finding common ground and passing legislation to fund the government and provide critical support to American families. How will the military be affected if the government shuts down? If there is an extended shutdown, military pay and civilian pay will halt. Without a deal on Capitol Hill, troops will miss their end-of-month paycheck during this holiday season. Military reservists drilling after Dec. 20 will not receive pay for those drills, and federal civilians who are required to work during a shutdown will not be paid either. Death benefits will also cease during a government shutdown, so if any deaths occur after one begins, the Defense Department could not pay out benefits until Congress passes a continuing resolution or an appropriations bill. Several Defense Department actions would continue under a government shutdown. For example, military personnel on active duty — including reserve component personnel on federal active duty — will continue to report for duty and carry out assignments. Military retiree benefits are paid from a trust fund and thus could continue during a shutdown. However, retiree pay may be slowed due to the lack of personnel working to process payments. Would a government shutdown affect holiday travel? In a post on X yesterday, TSA Administrator David Pekoske warned that “an extended government shutdown could mean longer wait times at airports,” throughout the holiday season even though TSA agents and air traffic control workers are expected to continue working throughout a shutdown. This is partially because absenteeism among TSA agents tends to rise during a government shutdown. In 2018, during a government shutdown, the absentee rate among airport screeners peaked at 10%, compared to the average 3% absence rate during regular periods of operation. Library of Congress announces its buildings will close if there’s a shutdown. The Library of Congress’ buildings will be closed to the public and researchers if the government shuts down, it said in an advisory. All public events will be canceled, the advisory said. “Also, all inquiries and requests to the Library of Congress web-based services will not be received or responded to until the shutdown ends.” Rep. Barbara Lee says Democrats are ready to negotiate. Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., who sits on the House Appropriations Committee, said Democrats are ready to negotiate on a funding bill and addressed a comment from Rep. Ana Paulina Luna, R-Fla., earlier today saying Republicans are “not cutting deals with Democrats.” “There was an agreement, and so we’re waiting, ready, willing and waiting to engage in negotiations,” Lee said. “But you heard what the congresswoman just said, they don’t care. They don’t want to.” Schumer demands Republicans return to the original agreement and work with Democrats. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said in floor remarks this morning that he wants Republicans to return to the original agreement that was negotiated in a bipartisan way with Democrats. He warned that if Republicans don’t work with Democrats, the government will shut down at 12:01 a.m. “It’s time to go back to the original agreement we had just a few days ago,” Schumer said. “It’s time for that. It’s time the House votes on our bipartisan CR. It’s the quickest, simplest and easiest way we can make sure the government stays open while delivering critical emergency aid to the American people.” Schumer added, “If the House put our original agreement on the floor today, it would pass, and we could put the threat of a shutdown behind us.” Rules Committee to meet on how to tackle a funding plan. Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., said the Rules Committee will meet soon to move forward on a government spending plan. Norman, a member of the committee, said the panel has to give an hour notice before meeting, and that the notice will go out soon. When asked if he will support the plan, Norman said yes, but he would not provide details. The House currently does not have authority to bring up a rule on the floor the same day it is approved by the Rules Committee. There are procedural work-arounds for this that the House will have to use if Republicans plan to bring the
