The Bill will go on to President Biden….
There will be NO Government shutdown…..
The Senate voted overwhelmingly Wednesday for legislation spearheaded by Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) to fund the government until early next year, wiping out the possibility that Congress will vote on another massive omnibus funding package before Christmas.
The bipartisan vote was 87-11, with 10 Republicans and one Democrat — Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) — voting in opposition.
Senate and House conservatives pledged they would do everything in their power to avoid having to consider another omnibus spending package right before Christmas and New Year’s, something that has become a Washington tradition.
Johnson’s two-step continuing resolution, which he unveiled last weekend, would do that by funding two tranches of government programs until Jan. 19 and Feb. 2.
As a result, lawmakers won’t face the usual end-of-year brinksmanship and the threat of a government shutdown right before the Christmas recess…..
Senators who did not vote for the appropriations:
Nay
Nay CO D Bennet, Michael
Nay TN R Blackburn, Marsha
Nay IN R Braun, Mike
Nay ID R Crapo, Mike
Nay UT R Lee, Mike
Nay KY R Paul, Rand
Nay ID R Risch, James
Nay MO R Schmitt, Eric
Nay FL R Scott, Rick
Nay AL R Tuberville, Tommy
Nay OH R Vance, J.D. (James)
Not Voting
No Vote TX R Cornyn, John
No Vote SC R Scott, Tim
WASHINGTON – House lawmakers abruptly went home a day early partially due to a familiar sight for the House Republican conference: a rebellion from the lower chamber’s most conservative lawmakers.
The quick departure came just one day after passing a short-term stopgap measure to avert a government shutdown.
Some 19 Republicans, mostly comprised of members of the ultraconservative House Freedom Caucus, tanked a procedural vote Wednesday morning. The procedural vote – referred to as a rule vote – has traditionally passed along party lines regardless of any member’s support or opposition to the bill’s rule.
House conservatives, however, have broken that precedent multiple times this year, illustrating how unwieldy the deeply divided GOP majority is for newly installed House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La.
Hard-right lawmakers shot down the rule vote this time around partly out of retaliation for Johnson’s funding plan – referred to as a continuing resolution – that cleared the House Tuesday. Those members have clamored for past months that any funding legislation include deep spending cuts, but Johnson’s bill was considered “clean” for retaining government funding at current levels.
Among their other grievances was opposition to a slate of amendments on one of the 12 appropriations bills needed to fund the government long-term.
“There’s certainly a concern with the bill itself in addition to concern relative to what happened with the (continuing resolution) yesterday,” said Rep. Bob Good, R-Va., a member of the Freedom Caucus who voted against the rule.
Chair of the Freedom Caucus, Rep. Scott Perry, R-Pa., contended that he and his conservative colleagues killed the rule vote out of “good faith” in pursuit of conservative policy wins.
U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) walks towards the House chamber at the U.S. Capitol on November 14, 2023 in Washington, DC.
New speaker, old divisions
Underscoring how divided the House Republican conference is even after electing a new speaker, moderate Republicans from the New York Delegation for the first time also voted to take down the rule.
Rep. Nick LaLota, R-N.Y., told reporters he voted against the rule due to spending cuts that he said would have disproportionately affected law enforcement in his district.
“We should regroup, get back to the kitchen, maybe choose some new ingredients, cook it a different way,” he said.
The House, which was originally scheduled to stay in session until Thursday, is now slated to return after Thanksgiving on Nov. 28….
Ken Tran,
USA Today via Yahoo!
https://news.yahoo.com/house-abruptly-heads-home-early-204735405.html