House Republican leaders are planning to hold a vote next week on a stopgap funding bill to prevent a government shutdown this fall in an early test of Democrats’ appetite for forcing another appropriations lapse.
The current plan is to vote on a bill, known as a continuing resolution, or CR, that would extend current government funding levels through the November election, House Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters Thursday.
Other Republicans welcomed the idea.
“A clean CR takes care of the shutdown,” said Rep. Keith Self, Texas Republican.
However, he said Republicans need to make sure they have enough members in town next week to pass it if they can’t count on Democratic votes.
Democrats have not yet said how they plan to vote since Republicans have yet to release the stopgap bill.
The government’s current funding does not expire until Sept. 30.
Rep. Thomas Massie, Kentucky Republican, said GOP leaders are taking a risk trying to move a stopgap funding bill now, given intraparty fights that have taken place over the past several weeks and halted progress on several bills.
“I think that’s ambitious given the rebellions that are happening here,” he said. “The natives are restless within the GOP conference.”
He pointed to GOP leaders having to pull a veterans bill scheduled for a floor vote on Thursday due to lack of support as a sign they have “really got problems.”
Before the July 4 recess, House GOP leaders could not get enough Republicans to adopt a procedural rule needed to bring partisan bills to the floor.
They succeeded in doing so this week only after agreeing to attach the SAVE America Act, a bill requiring proof of citizenship to register to vote and photo ID to cast a ballot, to a national security and State Department appropriations bill before it is sent to the Senate.
Some Republicans may demand the same for the stopgap funding bill.
