On Monday evening, the House Rules Committee of the United States voted to approve a temporary spending bill proposed by the Republicans. The bill will now proceed to a full debate in the House of Representatives to meet the deadline on Friday and avoid a government shutdown.
The House Rules Committee passed the bill with a 9-3 vote and established rules for its consideration. The spending bill will now be presented to the House for debate and final vote.
Chairwoman of the committee, Virginia Foxx, stated during the hearing, “This legislation is critical in preventing a government shutdown and allows us to continue serving the American people.”
“The House must take action to avoid a senseless shutdown crisis so we can focus on the next round of appropriations,” she said.
Last weekend, House Speaker Mike Johnson unveiled the Continuing Resolution which would fund the government until September 30, the end of the fiscal year. It also included an increase in defense spending and cuts to some non-defense programs.
However, it remains unclear whether the bill will garner enough votes to pass. It is expected that the majority of Democratic lawmakers will oppose the bill, and a few Republican members have yet to express their support.
If all Democratic members vote against the bill and all representatives are present for the vote, there can only be one Republican dissenting vote at most, otherwise the bill will not pass.
Republican Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky announced that he will vote against the bill. The office of Republican Representative Rich McCormick of Georgia stated that he is leaning towards voting against it. Republican Representative Tim Burchett of Tennessee stated his opposition to the bill on Monday evening.
On the other hand, some Republican lawmakers like Cory Mills of Florida and Eli Crane of Arizona have not made a decision yet. Republican Representative Tony Gonzales of Texas intends to make a decision at the last minute.
A positive sign for Speaker Johnson is that the House Freedom Caucus officially announced their support for the temporary funding bill on Monday evening, providing crucial support for the final vote on Tuesday.
The House Freedom Caucus is considered the most conservative Republican group in the House of Representatives, with significant influence on fiscal and policy issues within the Republican party.
“The House Freedom Caucus supports the Fiscal Year 2025 Continuing Resolution,” the group stated, “In contrast to the long-standing abuse of this legislative tool by Congress, this resolution represents a paradigm shift.”
Meanwhile, since the unveiling of the Continuing Resolution last weekend, Democrats have been fiercely criticizing it. On Monday, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries accused the bill of attempting to cut healthcare, child nutrition assistance, and veterans’ benefits.
“The Republican spending bill significantly cuts healthcare, child and family nutrition assistance, and veterans’ benefits,” Jeffries stated, “This is a bill we cannot support. House Democrats will not be complicit in Republicans harming the American people.”