Government Shutdown Showdown

September 22, 2023 | Washington, D.C.

by Eagle Forum Executive Director, Tabitha Walter

House Republicans Grapple Over Appropriations

With the government’s fiscal year ending on September 30, Congress has only a few days to act to keep the government open. The House must act first on spending bills as required by the Constitution. With ten of the 12 appropriations bills passed out of committee and a Republican majority, sending a package to the Senate before the October 1 deadline should have been easier. However, progress came to a halt over the last two weeks. With a diverse caucus of conservatives and moderates, Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) has the weighty task of uniting the party behind spending and policy limits. Can he pull it off before the government shuts down?

Unfortunately, we still do not have an answer to that question.

House Freedom Caucus Statement

The House Freedom Caucus (HFC) laid out their requests in a public statement last month. They explicitly stated that they would not support any measure that continues the exorbitant Democrat spending levels. The HFC wanted a topline number of $1.47 trillion instead of moderates’ $1.59 trillion and inclusion of the Secure the Border Act (H.R. 2), policies that counter the weaponization of the Department of Justice and Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), and the elimination of “woke” policies in the military. The House Appropriations Committee worked hard to include these measures in the appropriations bills, so passing a “clean” CR would undo all their efforts.

Although these policies seem sensible, GOP moderates disagreed. House Leadership could not drum up the 218 votes needed to pass such a continuing resolution to keep the government open.

Initial Agreement

Trying to find a way forward, an agreement was made between the House Freedom Caucus and the Main Street Caucus — the second largest Republican caucus — to bring a one-month CR to the floor including an 8 percent cut to non-defense spending and nearly all of H.R. 2 attached. Even though it was only a very short-term fix for government funding, the immigration provisions would be made permanent. With a slim majority of Republicans in the House, this compromise would be a huge win for border security. However, some conservatives opposed this approach for several reasons:  not enough spending cuts, no “top-line” spending number agreed upon by Leadership, and a general dislike of the “CR approach.”

Speaker Adjourns the House

In a surprise move, Speaker McCarthy canceled all votes and announced the House would adjourn on Thursday afternoon. This stirred up a hornet’s nest. Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX), like many House GOP members, wasn’t too keen on being “on call” over the weekend while Speaker McCarthy tried to work out this mess. He tweeted:

“We should not leave town — our border is on fire & we have to get our job done.”

Speaker McCarthy then met with his most vocal opponent: Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL). Jake Sherman with Punchbowl News reported that the latest strategy coming out of that meeting will be votes on individual appropriations bills. This was an unorthodox demand of Rep. Gaetz who was a persistent holdout on any continuing resolutions. In the past, the House has grouped together numerous appropriations and forced Members to take only one vote on a massive bill. When voting this way, Members tend to overlook a few provisions they are unhappy with for the “greater good.” However, voting on each bill with open debate and an opportunity to offer amendments gives all Members a say in what policies should be moved forward. Although a time-consuming process that would guarantee a government shutdown for some time — it allows for more transparency.

The House Is Only Round One

Passing a continuing resolution or large appropriations bill through the House won’t be the end of the story. The Senate will have to pass their version as well. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has agreed to do Biden’s bidding by refusing to accept any bill with conservative immigration measures or one without significant Ukraine funding. In fact, he has already begun moving his own bill that would provide appropriations for Military and Veterans Affairs, Agriculture, Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development. This would not include any conservative priorities and would give an open door for Speaker McCarthy to team up with Democrats to keep the government open. If Speaker McCarthy moves forward in such a manner, it would be a huge failure of House Leadership as well as the Republican Caucus as a whole.

Eagle Forum is closely monitoring the appropriations process as it develops hour by hour. We have sent a support letter to House Republicans for H.R. 2 measures to move forward. Next week, we are holding our annual Eagle Council where attendees will ascend on Capitol Hill to lobby their representatives and Senators on multiple issues including government spending.