The Speaker of the House, Kevin McCarthy, experienced another setback when a faction of House GOP lawmakers aligned themselves with Democrats, resulting in the failure of a proposal aimed at preventing a government shutdown.
On Friday, a cohort of House conservatives, comprising Representatives Marjorie Taylor Greene, Lauren Boebert, and Matt Gaetz, aligned themselves with Democrats in voting for a temporary bill. This bill aimed to provide legislators with additional time for deliberation prior to an imminent government shutdown.
According to The Hill, the tally concluded at 198-232 as twenty-one Republicans opposed McCarthy’s plan.
Nevertheless, in the event that the bill were to successfully navigate through the House, its prospects for progression in the Senate would be slim due to the Democrats’ tenuous control. President Joe Biden expressed his intention to exercise his veto power in the event that the bill successfully navigates through both chambers of Congress.
McCarthy has previously advocated for the passage of the bill with the intention of providing Republicans with increased bargaining power in negotiations with Senate Democrats and President Biden.
The speaker received support from moderate Republicans who attributed the failure of the temporary bill to Gaetz.
According to Representative Mike Lawler, as reported by The Hill, “There’s only one person to blame for any potential government shutdown, and that’s Matt Gaetz. He’s not a conservative Republican. He’s a charlatan.”
Despite the unsuccessful endeavor, McCarthy expressed his determination to persist with his plan to avert a shutdown, asserting that his approach remains fully operational and his objective is to “keep going.”
McCarthy made a statement to the press. “You have watched me time and again, have you ever known me to quit after one time if it doesn’t succeed?” McCarthy said to reporters. “I don’t stop.”
Reuters reported on the situation:
“Hardline Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives on Friday rejected a bill proposed by their leader to temporarily fund the government, making it all but certain that federal agencies will partially shut down beginning on Sunday,” the outlet reported.
In a 232-198 vote, the House defeated a measure that would extend government funding by 30 days and avert a shutdown. That bill would have cut spending and imposed immigration and border security restrictions, Republican priorities that had little chance of passing the Democratic-majority Senate.
The Senate, meanwhile, has been advancing a bipartisan stopgap bill to fund the government through Nov. 17, though it was not clear when they would vote.
“It’s not the end yet, I’ve got other ideas,” Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy told reporters following the defeat of the bill he had backed.
He declined to say what those ideas were.
If Congress does not pass a spending package that can be signed into law by President Joe Biden before 12:01 a.m. ET (0401 GMT) on Sunday, U.S. national parks will close, the Securities and Exchange Commission will suspend most of its regulatory activities, and pay for up to 4 million federal workers will be disrupted.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Friday that a government shutdown would “undermine” U.S. economic progress by idling programs for small businesses and children, and could delay major infrastructure improvements.
The shutdown would be the fourth in a decade and just four months after a similar standoff brought the federal government within days of defaulting on its $31 trillion debt. The repeated brinkmanship has raised worries on Wall Street, where the Moody’s ratings agency has warned it could damage U.S. creditworthiness.
McCarthy had hoped the Republican spending bill’s border provisions would have won over at least nine hardline holdouts who so far have defied efforts to avert a shutdown.
Democrats had warned that the Republican bill would slash benefits for poor women and children and resources for fighting wildfires.
In the end, 21 hardline House Republicans sided with Democrats to defeat the measure.
“Some of my colleagues couldn’t really see that securing our border and cutting spending was the right way to go. And I think that was important,” said Republican Representative Byron Donalds, a member of the hardline House Freedom Caucus who voted for the bill.
McCarthy notched a small win late on Thursday night when Republicans succeeded in passing three of four bills that would fund four federal agencies for the full fiscal year that starts Oct. 1. They stand no chance of passing the Democratic-controlled Senate and would not avert a shutdown because they do not fund the full government even if they do become law.
Holdouts say Congress should focus on these spending bills rather than temporary extensions, even if it leads to a shutdown.
“What does work is rolling up our sleeves and getting onto these single subject bills and moving them,” Representative Matt Gaetz said on a podcast after voting against the stopgap bill on Friday.
Former President Donald Trump weighed in on Friday with a post on Truth Social:
“I hear that Old Crow Mitch McConnell, together with his small band of weak and ineffective RINOS like Mitt Romney and “Hopeless” John Cornyn, are, as usual, trying to cobble together a series of massive concessions for Cryin’ Chuck Schumer and the Lunatic Left, in order to “bail out” Crooked Joe Biden, THE WORST & MOST CORRUPT PRESIDENT IN THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. The Old Crow, and his group of ten (plus) COWARDS, have savaged our Country by approving Trillions of Dollars for Green New Deal Insanity, and the Weaponization of our System of “Injustice.” Don’t do it!!!”
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