House Republicans are discussing a three- to four-week stopgap funding measure to avert a partial government shutdown starting Oct. 1 that would push decisions on military and economic aid for Ukraine as well as disaster relief into the regular fiscal 2024 spending bills.
The halting progress on next year’s appropriations was laid bare Wednesday when House GOP leaders were forced to postpone consideration of the rule for floor debate on the $826.4 billion Defense spending bill amid bipartisan opposition. With conservatives angling for unrelated spending concessions and Democrats united amid a White House veto threat, it wasn’t clear when a resolution would emerge.
The need to buy time for further negotiations stems from a steep divide between the chambers over appropriations levels, particularly for nondefense agencies. Despite a deal on spending caps reached in May to avert a debt ceiling crisis, House GOP conservatives have insisted on appropriating below those levels while the Senate, on a bipartisan basis, has added more money.
