Congress managed to avert a government shutdown just hours before the deadline, as the Senate approved a temporary spending bill introduced by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy with the help of Democratic votes.
The bill, known as the “clean” stopgap bill, was sent to President Biden’s desk and passed just before midnight, putting an end to a week of high tension on Capitol Hill.
This unexpected turn of events, with McCarthy turning to Democrats and facing defections from almost half of the Republican conference, surprised many in Washington who had expected a partial government shutdown.
The Senate passed the bill to extend current government spending levels for 45 days by a vote of 88-9, with only Republicans voting against it.
Senate Majority Leader Charles S. Schumer expressed his satisfaction, declaring, “We did it!”
SEE ALSO: House passes temporary spending bill to avoid midnight shutdown, bill heads to Senate
“Well, all is well that ends well”, said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. “We prevented a government shutdown, which I think is the most important thing.”
The legislation included $16 billion in disaster aid but did not include the additional funding for Ukraine that President Biden and Democrats had wanted. Democrats in both the House and the Senate chose to prioritize funding for the U.S. government over funding for Ukraine.
With the temporary funding secured, Congress now has more time to pass full-year spending bills for fiscal year 2024, which starts on Sunday.
While the House has advanced four of the twelve annual spending bills, the Senate has not passed any. It has become common for Congress to avoid a shutdown by relying on stopgap spending measures, eventually passing a single massive funding bill known as an omnibus.
A group of conservative House Republicans opposed the stopgap-omnibus pattern and rejected any temporary spending, including McCarthy’s legislation. They wanted to continue passing the remaining full-year appropriations bills during a partial shutdown.
McCarthy, facing opposition from within his own party, turned to Democrats for support and brought the clean bill to the floor.
Moving forward, McCarthy has canceled an upcoming recess to give lawmakers more time to work on bills. If full-year appropriations bills are not passed within the 45-day overtime period, another shutdown scramble could occur.
However, the reprieve from a shutdown means that the 2 million federal employees, 1.3 million active-duty service members, and various government services, such as travel and child care programs, will not be interrupted.
Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer had initially planned to pass a bipartisan stopgap bill in the Senate ahead of the divided House. However, Sen. Rand Paul obstructed that measure, which included funding for Ukraine and disaster aid amounting to $6 billion each, and a duration until November 17. Paul later allowed McCarthy’s bill to be expedited in the Senate.
A partial government shutdown seemed inevitable after McCarthy’s GOP conference dealt a major blow to a stopgap bill loaded with provisions to appease conservatives. The bill included increased border security and a 30% cut to domestic spending, but 21 Republicans rejected it, demanding a focus on passing full-year appropriations bills instead.
Despite the lack of Ukraine funding, the bill received bipartisan support in a 335-91 vote in the House, with more Democrats voting in favor than Republicans. While McCarthy succeeded in averting a shutdown, relying on Democrats could potentially affect his position as Speaker.
Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, a leader among conservative lawmakers opposing stopgap spending and advocating for single-subject spending bills, suggested that McCarthy’s position is uncertain.
McCarthy, however, appeared unfazed by the attempts to remove him from his role, stating that he is ready for any challenges.
