And why he’s facing criticism from fellow Republicans.
The pressure is on as Speaker Mike Johnson tries to push through a last-minute spending deal through Congress to prevent a partial government shutdown.
The two-tiered government funding extension Johnson shepherded through Congress will expire next week on Jan. 19, with the rest set to run out on Feb. 2. Luckily, congressional leaders reached a $1.66 trillion agreement on Sunday to fund the federal government in 2024.
While this long-sought-after accord is a step towards keeping the government’s doors open, it further enraged the right flank — the House Freedom Caucus, a powerful coalition that consists of some of the most conservative Republicans in the House. Following the news, the coalition called it a “total failure.”
Meanwhile, other Republicans have acknowledged that another shutdown wouldn’t be in the party’s — or country’s best interest. What’s worse, the clock is running out: “Time’s not on anyone’s side,” said GOP Sen. Markwayne Mullin.
What’s in the latest funding deal?
Ironically, the latest proposal is modeled after the one then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy struck with President Joe Biden, which prompted months of rebellion from hardline conservatives and ultimately cost McCarthy his gavel.
Johnson’s office initially said the government’s topline, or overall spending, level was $1.59 trillion. But there’s some discrepancy with that number — Democratic House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said in a joint statement that the non-discretionary spending figure is actually $772.7 billion, which would bring total spending to $1.66 trillion.
Johnson was able to toe the line with his right-wing faction by adding that there be some “key modifications” to offset expenses. This means clawing back $6.1 billion in unspent pandemic aid and accelerating IRS cuts this year rather than over two years. While Johnson admitted that “these final spending levels will not satisfy everyone,” he added that “this represents the most favorable budget agreement Republicans have achieved in over a decade.”
Congress still has to cut deals on the individual spending bills left to pass, but this marks a key step in dodging a government shutdown. Lawmakers needed a topline spending agreement for appropriators to write the bills that set line-by-line funding for federal agencies. Then Republican-led House and Democratic-controlled Senate will need to pass that legislation through both chambers. Did we mention the deadline is less than two weeks away?
What hurdles does Speaker Mike Johnson face?
Speaker Johnson faces some real challenges to passing a government funding bill.
Several hardline Republicans said they wouldn’t vote for federal financing unless Democrats agreed to pass H.R. 2 legislation. This would effectively reinstate Trump-era immigration policies, including restarting construction of the wall that runs along the border between the U.S. and Mexico. “We shouldn’t fund nonessential parts of the government until the border is secure,” GOP Rep. Bob Good told The Washington Post.
Johnson is also catching flak for the spending agreement from some House Republicans: Texas Rep. Chip Roy believes the plan is “terrible” because it will cause Republicans to lose leverage the party attained under previous agreements.
Still, other conservatives like Rep. Dave Joyce believe another shutdown would be a “bad idea,” because it could cost the federal government $60 million a day. And lawmakers don’t want to have to do another short-term funding deal, because not only would it be a blow to the military, it’d also lock in spending cuts across the board.
Johnson will also likely need support from Democrats: With House Majority Leader Steve Scalise out for cancer treatment until next month, the speaker might find himself having to rely on Democratic lawmakers if three GOP lawmakers don’t ultimately back his funding deal.
So far, it’s looking promising. Despite GOP demands for cuts, Democrats were able to preserve funding for key domestic and social safety net programs. In a joint statement, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries both voiced their support for the agreement, saying it will help “keep the investments for hardworking American families secured by the legislative achievements of President Biden and Congressional Democrats.”
Similarly, President Biden said it “moves us one step closer to preventing a needless government shutdown and protecting important national priorities.”
But Democrats have made it clear that they don’t support attaching right-wing conservative policy amendments — including limits on abortion access. “We have made clear to Speaker Mike Johnson that Democrats will not support including poison-pill policy changes in any of the 12 appropriations bills put before the Congress,” Schumer and Jeffries added in their statement.
