GOP dissent grows to Mike Johnson's shutdown plan
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House Speaker Mike Johnson at the Capitol on Sept. 10, 2024. Photo: Kent Nishimura/Getty Images.
An increasing number of top House Republicans are openly second-guessing House Speaker Mike Johnson's (R-La.) attempt to appease his right flank in his efforts to avert a government shutdown.
Why it matters: Establishment and swing-district Republicans, typically Johnson's most loyal soldiers, are panicking that they just burned one of the three remaining weeks before government funding runs dry with nothing to show for it.
- Under mounting GOP opposition, Johnson pulled a vote on his bill to extend government funding for six months, which would have included a measure to require proof of citizenship to register to vote in federal elections.
What they're saying: "A number of us tried to tell him early on that that plan was futile, that it likely wasn't going to work," said Rep. Steve Womack (R-Ark.), a senior Appropriations Committee member.
- Womack warned that House Republicans are "losing some time right now" and "increasing the odds of having to swallow something that we would prefer not to swallow."
- Rep. Max Miller (R-Ohio) called the attempt to appease conservatives a "silly game," adding, "We are going to screw things up and hurt our nominee."
Between the lines: Republicans are coming to grips with the fact that the Democrat-led Senate will reject anything besides a "clean" three-month funding measure.
- "I don't think we're going to ... get something back from the Senate that extends beyond this year," said Appropriations Committee Chair Tom Cole (R-Okla.).
- Cole said he he understands the desire for a six-month stopgap, but "we didn't get the votes for that."
- "If you've got 5, 10, 20 Republicans that are not going to vote for it, sounds like you've got to pull it," said Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.).
Zoom in: Battleground-district Republicans, in particular, are anxious about the political ramifications of a government shutdown weeks before the election.
- One vulnerable House Republican, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said swing-district lawmakers feel "overwhelmingly" that "a shutdown will lose [us] the majority."
- "A government shutdown during an election ... would be catastrophic. Perhaps it would be unrepairable in its consequences," said Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-Mont.).
- Zinke, like others, also expressed concern about potential funding shortfalls for the military, farm subsidies and veterans under a six-month measure.
The other side: Johnson told reporters Wednesday that Republicans are "having thoughtful conversations" about the next steps on government funding.
- "I believe we will get there," he added.
