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Speaker of the House Mike Johnson pulled a vote on his temporary spending bill on Wednesday just hours before it was scheduled to head to the floor, citing a lack of agreement by House Republicans.
“We’re having thoughtful conversations, family conversations within the Republican conference and I believe we’ll get there,” Johnson told reporters.
The temporary bill would have funded federal agencies and programs for six months upon the new fiscal year beginning on October 1. Congress must pass a stopgap spending bill before that day in order to avoid a partial government shutdown – which would occur right before the presidential election.
But the legislative package also includes a controversial measure that would require voters to provide proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote, known as the SAVE Act.
At least six House Republicans voiced opposition to it which, in combination with Democratic disapproval, is enough to sink it.
Even with Republican support, the funding bill was unlikely to pass in the Democratic-controlled Senate and the Biden administration said the president would veto the measure.
Johnson told reporters that Majority Whip Tom Emmer was “going to do the hard work and build consensus”
“We’re going to work through the weekend on that,” Johnson said.
Wednesday’s decision indicates that there is still internal conflict within the House Republican Party.
Last year, the House GOP was thrown into chaos when rifts began to form among factions and a group of far-right Republicans, led by Representative Matt Gaetz, ousted former Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy.
Since then, House GOP leadership has been working to present a united front to Americans in a tumultuous election year.
But despite Johnson’s public confidence that he could push ahead with the spending bill vote on Tuesday evening, by Wednesday afternoon it was clear that would not happen.
There is no indication a government shutdown will certainly happen. Congressional leaders are working hard to avoid it.
But doing so may mean Republicans need to make major concessions.
Democrats want the controversial voter registration measure stripped from the spending package and only want it to fund the government until December – in anticipation of the November election.
Johnson is facing the pressure of his party as well as former president Donald Trump who, on Tuesday, advocated for a government shutdown if that meant the controversial measure would not be included.
