It's déjà vu all over again at the US Capitol. A Friday deadline looms as Congress scrambles to pass a Continuing Resolution to avoid a government shutdown. House reps are in panic mode and tempers are flaring.
You think they'd have learned by now that all this undue stress could be avoided if they had just passed a budget.
House Speaker Mike Johnson faces intense criticism from fellow Republicans as the deadline to pass the CR approaches. Johnson had promised a clean stop-gap bill to provide funding for the government until March 14th. Critics claim what is being presented is a 1500-page omnibus spending bill disguised as a CR.
BREAKING REPORT: Congress attempting to RAM THROUGH SECRET spending bill and blow $50 BILLION on favors before Trump takes office..
— Chuck Callesto (@ChuckCallesto) December 17, 2024
THEY ARE SETTING HIM UP, SHARE THIS EVERYWHERE!!https://t.co/JOlV7f7UJq
Johnson has indicated that he will adhere to the '72-Hour' rule, in which lawmakers have 3 days to review the 1500-page bill before a 12th-hour vote on Friday.
“It’s a total dumpster fire,” Rep. Eric Burlison (R-MO) said. “This is why I ran for Congress, to try to stop this. Sadly, this is happening again.”
Burlison went on to express disappointment in Speaker Johnson's handling of the CR.
Rep Eric Burlison (R-MO) is furious about the CR (still not released) that is to be voted on tomorrow to avert a Friday government shutdown.
— 🇺🇸ProudArmyBrat (@leslibless) December 17, 2024
Speaker Johnson is a total failure! pic.twitter.com/AWuv149uuo
Johnson is defending the bill and the additional spending measures that have been added to it. Including money earmarked for disaster relief.
Johnson on CR: It was intended to be, and it was until recent days, a very simple, very clean CR stopgap funding measure to get us into next year when we have unified government, under Republican and the Republican Party. But a couple of intervening things have occurred. We had,…
— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) December 17, 2024
The post continues.
We had, as we say, as we described them, acts of God. We had these massive hurricanes in the late fall, Helene and Milton and other, disasters, we have to make sure that the Americans that were devastated by these hurricanes get the relief they need. So we are adding to this a disaster relief package. And that's critically important. Also important is, the devastation that is, that is being faced by our farming community. The agriculture sector is really struggle. They've had effectively three lost years
Chip Roy wasn't buying it.
.@RepChipRoy on CR: "We're just fundamentally un-serious about spending. As long as you got a blank check you can't shrink government. If you can't shrink government you can't live free." pic.twitter.com/6GWMyHfJ6S
— CSPAN (@cspan) December 17, 2024
It's unclear how many Republican votes Johnson can afford to lose and still pass the bill.
Congress Scrambles To Avoid Friday Government Shutdown https://t.co/mojlgQb3B4
— zerohedge (@zerohedge) December 16, 2024
What is clear is Democrats are trying to take advantage.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) rolled out a wishlist of demands in exchange for their cooperation, including:
– The federal government would pay 100% of the cost of rebuilding the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore. This could run to $2 billion or more.
– A trade deal that would allow duty-free access for Haitian apparel and textile imports.
– Reauthorization of the African Growth and Opportunity Act, which permits duty-free imports for hundreds of products from sub-Saharan African countries.
– Funding to build museums on the National Mall to honor women and Hispanics.
– The Second Chance Act, which aims to help the reentry of convicted criminals back into communities. -
We couldn't confirm if any of these 'demands' made it into the final bill, but none seem to be essential to a bill that's intended to temporarily fund the government.
Lots of folks here in Congress are eager to celebrate DOGE’s mission—yet they’ll turn around and vote for the Swamp’s status quo of deficit spending.
— Rep. Andrew Clyde (@Rep_Clyde) December 17, 2024
Congress can’t save our country if it can’t get serious about Washington’s spending problem.
And here we go. https://t.co/5kjC2feSKW pic.twitter.com/MO06xafkiX
— Rep. Mike Collins (@RepMikeCollins) December 17, 2024
Representatives have just 72 hours to read this 1500-page monstrosity, which doesn't leave much time to make changes or, more directly, cut the overinflated bill.
Much to our horror, they have buried over $100M in disaster relief funding (much of it going to Pinellas) in a massive CR—this is a sneaky mega omnibus in disguise.
— Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (@RepLuna) December 17, 2024
This should have been a stand-alone bill, but they chose to hold us hostage instead.
She's right; disaster relief should be a stand-alone bill, but no one is being held hostage. Like every member of the House, she has the option to vote NO.
I’m voting NO on the CR and much like the American people, I’m getting tired of governing this way.
— Wesley Hunt (@WesleyHuntTX) December 17, 2024
Read my latest column in the @dcexaminer LINK in BIO 📲 pic.twitter.com/MJW1bvyaft
Adding obnoxious porkbarrel spending to bills at the last minute has been going on far too long in DC. Defeating this bill would be a good first step toward ending the practice.
Dear Republicans Whining About Not Having Enough Time to Read the CR Before Voting On It,
— The🐰FOO (@PolitiBunny) December 17, 2024
Vote no.
Simple.
Don't complicate it.
If you don't have time to read it, you don't have time to pass it.
Glad I could help you all out. :)
Merry Christmas!
PB
Vote no. It's as simple as that. Defeat the bill and let the government shut down. Put the pressure back on House leadership to cut the porkbarrel spending out and present a clean bill.
Easy peasy. At least it should be.
If House Republicans are unable to 'Just Say No' and the bill passes, it will meet additional opposition when it arrives in the Senate.
What do RFK Stadium, $50 billion for Big Pharma, and two new Smithsonian museums do for Americans devastated by the hurricanes? https://t.co/IhWxWIAh48
— Mike Lee (@SenMikeLee) December 17, 2024
Republicans in the Senate may not have enough votes to kill the bill, but Rand Paul intends to delay it should it pass the House.
BREAKING: Senator Rand Paul says he will delay the passage of a massive Omnibus Spending Bill, if it passes the House which would result in a Government Shutdown if the bill is not passed by Friday.
— Ian Jaeger (@IanJaeger29) December 17, 2024
Thank you Senator Paul. pic.twitter.com/pWwl7goLsZ
Rand Paul can always be counted on to have the courage to stand by his convictions, but we hope it doesn't come to that. Speaker Johnson should never have presented a bloated 'Omnibus in Disguise' CR bill, and it should be defeated in a Republican-controlled House. That's what we should expect of them.
Stand up, stand together, and do what's right.
SHUT IT DOWN.
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