House Republicans have not reached a consensus on a stopgap bill and a partial government shutdown at midnight Saturday appears unavoidable.
A faction of at least seven arch-conservative lawmakers have promised to never vote for a short-term bill, meaning whatever House Speaker Kevin McCarthy produces is dead as soon as it hits the floor.
The Democrat-run Senate is advancing its temporary spending legislation that would keep the government open while Congress hammers out long-term appropriations. But that bill is a non-starter in the GOP-led House.
Mr. McCarthy, California Republican, nevertheless expresses confidence that the House will pass a stopgap bill and shutdown will be averted.
“At the end of the day, we will get this done,” Mr. McCarthy said on CNBC.
The partial shutdown will cause many of the federal government’s 2 million employees and 2 million active-duty military troops and reservists to be furloughed. But under law, those workers and troops
are guaranteed repayment of missed paychecks.
Some services would be suspended, such as Head Start centers, and some national parks could close. The mail would still be delivered, Social Security checks would be sent out, and Medicare, Medicaid and veterans’ benefits would continue.
Mr. McCarthy has been leaning on Republican lawmakers to come together, pass a temporary spending bill on Friday and take the fight to the Senate.
“Let’s get something over there. Let’s not be held hostage by the Senate. If we can’t pass something, that puts us in a weaker position,” the speaker said at a closed-door House Republican Conference meeting, according to lawmakers in the room.
The various versions of a House stopgap spending bill, known in congressional jargon as a continuing resolution or CR, all include steep spending cuts and border security policy that make the legislation unpalatable for the Senate.
The Senate legislation passed another procedural hurdle Thursday, and Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer said senators can expect to vote for the measure by Saturday.
The Senate bill also includes $6 billion in aid for Ukraine, which is unacceptable to a large faction of House Republicans.
Senate Republicans are working with moderates in the Senate Democratic Caucus to add billions of dollars for border security, but no actual policy, to the bill.
Sen. John Cornyn, Texas Republican, said that would be just window dressing.
“Just providing additional money to help the administration continue to do what it’s doing now is not going to solve the problem,” Mr. Cornyn said. “It’s just gonna make it worse.”
It’s also not enough to win support among House Republicans.
Rep. Andy Ogles of Tennessee, one of the arch-conservatives who refuses to back any continuing resolution, told The Washington Times that he was determined to set a precedent and end the longtime practice of using stopgap bills and giant packages that fund the entire government.
He wants to create muscle memory in Congress to pass the 12 annual spending bills one by one rather than through colossal omnibus packages.
“My expectation is there’s more than enough to block any [stopgap] and then force us to move forward on appropriations,” Mr. Ogles said.
• Alex Miller can be reached at amiller@washigtontimes.com.