Spokesman Mike Johnson’s short-term funding bill surprisingly failed in the House of Representatives on Wednesday after Republican chaos.
The speaker coupled short-term funding through March 2025 with the SAVE Act, a bill that would restrict non-citizen voting in upcoming elections by requiring proof of citizenship.
But nearly all Democrats voted against it and a handful of diehard Republicans crossed party lines to reject the measure, called a continuing resolution (CR), which they said was not fiscally conservative enough.
And the pressure is mounting as there are just 13 days left until government funding runs out, halting funding to critical agencies.
Former President Donald Trump has stepped into the middle of the standoff, encouraging a government shutdown if the SAVE Act is not part of the package.
Johnson said he had spoken “a lot” with Trump about the bill after the former president said he would support a government shutdown.
Trump has suggested that Johnson let federal funding expire if the SAVE Act is not passed.
“President Trump and I have talked a lot about this. We’ve talked a lot about this with our colleagues who are building consensus on the plan,” he told reporters Wednesday without revealing whether there is a Plan B for when the bill fails.
Johnson now faces pressure to work with Democrats to pass a “clean” CR without the SAVE Act to fund the government until the election, which infuriates Trump, or else risk being blamed for a pre-election election.
Trump turned to Truth Social to encourage Republicans to move forward with the SAVE Act.
“If Republicans do not understand the SAVE Act, and every ounce of it, they should not agree to a Continuing Resolution in any way, shape or form,” he wrote.
‘Democrats are registering illegal voters by the TENS OF THOUSANDS as we speak. They will be voting in the 2024 presidential election and should not be allowed to do so.’
Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and a handful of other Republicans have vowed to vote against the measure, arguing that it does not “responsibly” fund the government.
He called Johnson’s bill an “undead but doomed zombie.”
Last week, Johnson decided not to put the government funding bill to a vote because it did not have enough Republican support.
Many Republicans are concerned that a government shutdown could negatively affect their chances for re-election in November.
Congress must pass a government funding bill by October 1 or the federal system will begin to shut down
Trump is demanding passage of the SAVE Act, which restricts voter registration for illegal immigrants, ahead of his race against Vice President Kamala Harris.
Most Republicans support the strategy, although some have questioned the spending levels contained in the legislation.
With the margin between Democrats and Republicans so narrow in the House, Johnson can only afford to lose four Republican votes to Democrats.
Currently, of the 435 members of the House of Representatives, 220 are Republicans, while there are 211 Democrats. There are four vacancies.
Johnson can only afford to lose four votes from his Republican Party to pass the bill.
Currently, of the 435 members of the House of Representatives, 220 are Republicans, while there are 211 Democrats. There are four vacancies.
Johnson can only afford to lose four votes from his Republican Party to pass the bill.