A partial government shutdown is imminent as members in the House of Representatives negotiate to provide government funding prior to a nearing deadline.
Democrat legislators are criticizing House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) for his failure to obtain a consensus amongst Republican representatives to pass government funding legislation.
On their end, Republicans are accusing Democrats of being unwilling to seriously consider any of the funding offers made by their counterparts.
US Representative Cory Mills (R-FL) outlined how the Democrat-controlled Senate has ignored numerous funding bills passed by the Republican-majority House.
Representative Mills listed such bills, which include the H.R 1 Lost Cost Energy Act, H.R. 2 Secure The Border Act, H.R. 5 Parental Rights Bill, HR 4365 Defense (28SEP2023), HR 4394 Energy-Water (26OCT2023), and more.
Mills therefore claimed any shutdown would be a “Schumer Shutdown.”
Among the funding issues being debated is foreign aid. Last week, the US Senate passed a sweeping $95 billion foreign aid spending bill that would, among other things, fund Israel, Ukraine, and Taiwan.
House Republicans have vowed to not consider the bill given its failure to address domestic policy issues, namely, the southwest border’s migration crisis.
Speaker Johnson met with President Joe Biden earlier today to discuss potential avenues for averting a government shutdown.
Johnson underscored that prior to funding foreign governments he is committed to “taking care of America’s needs first.”
When I met with the White House and Congressional leaders today, my purpose was to express what I believe is the obvious truth: that we must take care of America's needs first. pic.twitter.com/bbNWgvCVCI
— Speaker Mike Johnson (@SpeakerJohnson) February 27, 2024
Johnson explained such needs must include securing the border.
Regarding funding negotiations, Johnson was optimistic “an agreement could be made to prevent a government shutdown.”
On Ukraine and the foreign aid bill, Johnson suggested House Republicans could potentially consider the bill in the coming days, given their demands are met.
However, Johnson emphasized “our primary priority is securing the border.”
