The House of Representatives passed a two-step stop-gap funding measure, funding part of the government until January 19 and the rest to February 2. There was no aid for Israel and Ukraine. If passed by the senate and signed by president Biden (which seems likely), then that will avert the shutdown deadline on Friday and will buy another two months before the next shutdown crisis.
The voting was interesting. It passed 336 to 95 but most of the votes to pass (209) came from Democrats with only 127 Republicans joining them. Just two Democrats sided with 93 Republicans to oppose the bill. This result is almost identical to the one that passed the previous continuing resolution on September 30th. 209 Democrats and 126 Republicans voted in favor while one Democrats and 90 Republicans voted against it. When former speaker Kevin McCarthy passed that continuing resolution without demanding the big spending cuts that his extremist faction demanded, it caused apoplexy among Matt Gaetz and his faction of the GOP who argued that he was caving in to Biden and the Democrats and triggered the process that led to his ouster.
Now that Johnson has done almost exactly the same thing, what will the Gaetz faction do? I cannot see them having the stomach to do a similar revolt against Johnson and oust him after the entire GOP conference had hailed him as the party’s savior after the bruising speaker battle. They cannot afford to go through that again. But if they don’t do anything, then they would have been effectively defanged.
There are reports that they are furious about this vote but are not sure what to do and are trying to find ways to assert their power.
Many House conservatives are fuming that Johnson — the most ideologically conservative speaker in decades — refused to take a hard line in his first attempt negotiating with Democrats and instead leaned on them for help. In the end, more Democrats voted for the measure than Republicans, in nearly identical numbers to the September stopgap measure that triggered McCarthy’s firing. Some tore into his strategy in a closed-door meeting Tuesday, arguing that his plan, which would allow funding levels set under Nancy Pelosi to persist for months, is tantamount to surrender.
They’re not looking to oust Johnson over it. But some conservatives are privately entertaining other ways to retaliate.
Watch the GOP go through yet another drama of infighting.
I think it’s conceivable that Mike Johnson could have the ability to learn on the job. He has said things which indicate that he can, but of course he’s said many things which indicate that he can not. That’s a step in the right direction and much better than many in his caucus. He wants to keep his job and that requires breaking the existing log jam. If cooperating with the Democrats gets him that, I think he will.
Your “country” is very strange.
Their drama caused a credit downgrade. But I’ll take pointless twit-fueled drama while they keep the lights on and the bills paid over the alternative. Which seems to be shambling from one manufactured crisis to the next.
Yes, that means my expectations for members of the GOP are now so low that as long as they aren’t actively trying to destroy the country, they pass. I just wish more GOP voters could figure out that trying to implode the nation if you don’t get your way is not patriotism.
Well, see, there’s your problem.
Republicans regard compromise, including for the purpose of avoiding a government shutdown, as surrender, and disagreement as something that requires retaliation. These are the terms they think in.
I think there is something very wrong with them.
Too many fuehrers, just one volk.