House to vote on Speaker Mike Johnson's funding plan as shutdown looms

WASHINGTON — Speaker Mike Johnson said the House will vote Wednesday on a six-month stopgap funding bill linked to legislation requiring proof of citizenship to register to vote — the same package he abruptly pulled off the floor last week amid growing GOP opposition.

Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, spent the weekend calling members and trying to flip GOP defections to the yes column. But given Republicans’ narrow 220-211 majority, and some members’ blanket opposition to short-term bills known as continuing resolutions, or CRs, it’s highly unlikely Johnson can push the package through the House.

The federal government is set to shut down at 12:01 a.m. on Oct. 1 unless Democrats and Republicans can agree on a funding bill. Johnson's plan calls for a half-year CR tied to the Donald Trump-backed SAVE Act, though the package would be dead on arrival in the Democratic-led Senate and faces a veto threat from President Joe Biden.

• Add to Google

Government shutdown looms over Congress as deadline fast approaches

04:07

“Congress has an immediate obligation to do two things: responsibly fund the federal government, and ensure the security of our elections. Because we owe this to our constituents, we will move forward on Wednesday with a vote on the 6-month CR with the SAVE Act attached,” Johnson said in a statement Tuesday.

“I urge all of my colleagues to do what the overwhelming majority of the people of this county rightfully demand and deserve — prevent non-American citizens from voting in American elections,” he said.

As he opened the House floor, Johnson told reporters he'll be having more conversations with GOP holdouts Tuesday and Wednesday before the vote but made no promises the package would pass.

"We'll see what happens. I really hope we can do it," Johnson said, vowing to stick with his strategy. "I'm not having any alternative conversations. That's the play, it's an important one, and I'm going to work around the clock to get it passed."

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation spotlights stringent New York state laws that have long drawn criticism

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThe debate over AI’s future rages on both coasts

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDecades-old march dispute reignites in Northern Ireland, threatening political crisis

The White House, congressional Democrats and some Republicans are pushing for an even shorter-term bill that keeps the government open past the election, into December. That would buy bipartisan negotiators more time to strike a deal on fiscal year 2025 funding.

In a floor speech Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., praised Johnson for offering a CR that sticks to the fiscal 2024 funding levels that the two leaders agreed to earlier this year.

But he panned the speaker’s CR and SAVE Act strategy as “unworkable” and urged him to abandon it.

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation spotlights stringent New York state laws that have long drawn criticism

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThe debate over AI’s future rages on both coasts

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDecades-old march dispute reignites in Northern Ireland, threatening political crisis

“At this point in the process, the only way we can prevent a harmful government shutdown is by both sides working together to reach a bipartisan agreement,” Schumer said.

“Speaker Johnson is reportedly going to hold a vote on his six-month CR tomorrow. But the only thing that will accomplish is make clear that he’s running into a dead end. We must have a bipartisan plan instead," he said.

Trump has urged congressional Republicans to shut down the government if Congress doesn't pass the SAVE Act. But on Tuesday, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., warned that a shutdown would be politically harmful for Republicans.

"The one thing you cannot have is a government shutdown," McConnell told reporters after Senate Republicans' weekly lunch. "It would be politically beyond stupid for us to do that right before the election because, certainly, we'd get the blame."

On Wednesday evening, a parade of key GOP lawmakers streamed in and out of the speaker's office. Johnson first hosted his leadership team, then asked top appropriators (who are tasked with writing funding bills) to meet with him.

Leaving the office, GOP Policy Committee Chairman Gary Palmer, R-Ala., a staunch conservative, said he supported Johnson's plan to move forward with the vote because it would reveal the GOP defections.

The vote is about “putting people on the record to see where everyone lands," Palmer told NBC News. “I think everybody ought to be given the opportunity to show where they are on the issues.”