Axios Sneak Peek
September 20, 2024
1 big thing: 🏳 Johnson's coming surrender
The end to the shutdown drama is in sight. The end to House Speaker Mike Johnson's political headaches is not.
- Johnson spoke with Republican appropriators about drafting a "clean" three-month funding bill, we learned this afternoon.
Why it matters: This caps 10 excruciating days for Johnson. At each step, he's insisted the inevitable wasn't inevitable. No one bought it.
- Johnson hasn't publicly endorsed the three-month plan, which the White House and Senate Democrats always favored.
- But he's inching toward the outcome many Senate Republicans privately said was coming: A spending bill through November that didn't include a GOP voting proposal to require proof of citizenship to vote. Johnson's six-month stopgap plus the voting legislation failed yesterday.
Zoom in: We told you last night Johnson has a Plan B — but he wouldn't share it. That's still the case.
- Into the void stepped Appropriations Chair Tom Cole (R-Okla.), who told reporters this afternoon he's starting to work on a bill that funds the government through Dec. 13 or Dec. 20.
- "There's a lot of conversations going on right now," Johnson told reporters this evening. "We'll make a play call. We got time."
- The federal government will shut down on Oct. 1 unless a spending stopgap or new budget is approved.
What we're hearing: Rep. Ralph Norman (R-S.C.) said there'll be a "lot of disappointment" if Johnson goes bipartisan.
- Asked if Johnson would face a revolt if he moved ahead with a clean three-month bill, Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.) responded: "I sure hope so."
🚨 Johnson's rank-and-file and deputies see warning signs coming.
- House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) has broadened his help on fundraising and campaigning beyond his conservative core. Republicans see this as evidence he's ready for a leadership challenge.
- Jordan failed to become speaker last year — and still has enough GOP detractors to block a new bid, sources tell us.
- But becoming party leader only takes a majority vote.
What's next: Appropriators in the House and Senate — the so-called four corners — are expected to hash out the details over the weekend, with votes expected early next week.
- Meanwhile, the White House has started to engage. Shalanda Young, the director of the Office of Management and Budget, spoke this afternoon with Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), the top Republican appropriator.
— Hans Nichols, Juliegrace Brufke and Andrew Solender
2. 🦻Johnson's audience of one
Johnson is scheduled to have another audience tonight with the one Republican who seems most intent on a shutdown: former President Trump.
- Why it matters: Johnson won't need Trump's blessing to move past the SAVE Act. But a furious response would be devastating.
Between the lines: This is a bad night to meet with Trump, who's dealing with chaos after a CNN report on close ally and North Carolina gubernatorial candidate Mark Robinson.
- Robinson referred to himself as a "black NAZI!" on message boards. He also expressed support for reinstating slavery and said he enjoyed watching transgender pornography, CNN reports.
- Before the story's publication, Robinson posted a video on social media denying the allegations.
— Hans Nichols and Juliegrace Brufke
3. 📺 Scoop: Jeffries’ Trump-district cash dump
4. 🌊 Schumer floods the battlegrounds
The top battlegrounds for Senate Democrats — especially Ohio, Pennsylvania and Montana — have an extraordinary amount of upcoming spending from Schumer's super PAC.
- The big picture: Senate Majority PAC and its affiliates have reserved nearly $255 million in ads across eight of the most competitive states between Sept. 1 and Election Day.
A source familiar with the reservations said most were placed in March, which means Schumer got cheaper rates than if he did so late in the cycle.
— Stephen Neukam
Axios Sneak Peek
