In Washington’s tense, politically polarized environment, getting a government funding bill passed before a looming shutdown deadline will not be easy.
The small GOP majority in the U.S. House of Representatives narrowly passed a bill, with only Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Kentucky) joining Democrats in voting “no.” But Senate Republicans have their criticisms of that bill. And even if the House and the Senate reach an agreement, President Donald Trump has the power to veto any spending bill that he doesn’t like.
In a listicle published by The Hill on March 8, reporters Al Weaver and Mychael Schnell cite three groups to keep a close eye on as a shutdown grows closer and budget talks intensity.
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The groups are: (1) “Democrats,” (2) “House conservatives,” and (3) “defense hawks.”
“Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) is set to move forward with a stopgap measure, also known as a continuing resolution (CR), that will run through the end of fiscal 2025 on September 30,” Weaver and Schnell explain. “It’s unclear whether the legislation will have the votes to get through both chambers…. Johnson may need Democrats to back the measure in the House given the likelihood that some conservative Republicans will vote against it…. Because the bill extends existing funding, the legislation will essentially fund the government at the levels set under former President Biden. But Democrats angered with the efforts by Trump and Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) say they will vote against the measure anyway.”
Weaver and Schnell note that many hard-right Republicans in the House — including members of the House Freedom Caucus — “oppose CRs on principle” but will have a hard time opposing anything that Trump favors.
Freedom Caucus Chairman Andy Harris (R-Maryland) told The Hill, “We had a great meeting with the president. The group of conservatives in the office with him all want to support the president’s agenda, and we’re going to work toward getting that continuing resolution in the form where we can pass it, just like we did last week.”
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According to Weaver and Schnell, “GOP defense hawks” are an “important group to watch” because they want to make sure that “the Pentagon receives the requisite funding.”
House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mike Rogers (R-Alabama) told The Hill, “I’ve been told that they’re gonna hold the Defense Department harmless, both financially and with anomalies, and that’ll get it out of the House. I don’t know how they get it out of the Senate, but I’m not leadership. I’ve told leadership that I will not support a CR that does not hold the Defense Department completely harmless, both in its budget and with anomalies for new starts.”
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Read Al Weaver and Mychael Schnell’s full article for The Hill at this link.
