Congress sprints to funding finish line despite conservative outrage

Congress is racing the clock to approve a $1.2 trillion funding bill ahead of Friday’s night’s shutdown deadline, aiming to pass the sprawling legislation quickly despite intense outrage from conservatives on both sides of the Capitol.

The House and Senate have less than 30 hours to pass the six-bill package — which will keep a slew of departments and agencies funded past Friday at midnight — as lawmakers look to avert a partial government shutdown and avoid a weekend full of votes.

With that deadline looming, leaders in both chambers are kicking the consideration process into high gear, ignoring the sharp criticisms from conservatives — particularly in the House — who are hammering the legislation’s high price tag, denouncing various expenditures in the measure, speaking out about the exclusion of their controversial policy riders, and taking aim at leadership for the way they are bringing the bill to the floor.

“On any bipartisan agreement, you have some Democrats and some Republicans that drop off,” House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) said.

Asked if he is confident the bill will clear the lower chamber, Scalise responded: “Yeah.”

The six-bill package lays out funding for roughly three-quarters of the federal government, including the departments of Homeland Security (DHS), Defense, Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and State.

Both sides are claiming victories in the legislation: Democrats have pointed to investments in child care and domestic programs, while GOP leaders are touting an increase in the number of detention beds for the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, as well as cuts to diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

Passage of the measure will bring to a close the long and winding road that has been funding fiscal 2024, which has included four continuing resolutions, led to the first-ever ouster of a sitting Speaker, and sparked frustration among members in both parties and chambers.

Leaders are eager to wrap up the drawn-out process.

“When passed, it will extinguish any more shutdown threats for the rest of the fiscal year, it will avoid the scythe of budget sequestration, and it will keep the government open without cuts or poison pill riders,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said on the floor Thursday morning, adding that some involved in the appropriations process are likely “past the point of exhaustion.”

The House is set to debate the spending bill at around 9 a.m. EDT Friday, which will be followed by a vote in the 11 a.m. hour. The chamber is taking up the legislation under suspension of the rules, a fast-track process that eliminates the need to first pass a rule — which conservatives would likely tank — but requires two-thirds support for passage.

Hard-liners have lashed out at leadership, especially Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), for using the procedural maneuver to bring the bill to the floor, in addition to the decision to hold a vote less than 72 hours after releasing the text — breaching the “72-hour rule” that hard-liners have been adamant about all Congress.

“[Johnson] made the deal with Schumer. He brings the floor for a vote; he directs the conditions under which it’s coming — suspension of the rules, waiving the 72 hours — so yes, he will be responsible for the bill,” said Rep. Bob Good (R-Va.), the chair of the conservative House Freedom Caucus.

They have also voiced concern with dollars set aside for the new FBI headquarters in Maryland, and funding for facilities that support the LGBTQ community, among other qualms.

The GOP opposition, however, is not just from members of the House Freedom Caucus. Rep. Robert Aderholt (R-Ala.) — the chair of the appropriations subcommittee on Labor and Health and Human Services — announced Thursday night that he will vote against the spending package, raising concerns about funding pertaining to social services for immigrants and groups that assist the LGBTQ community.

“The House did not include these partisan funding projects in its Labor-HHS legislation. Based on these principles, the Senate shouldn’t either,” Aderholt wrote in a statement.

“In good conscience, I cannot and will not vote for these projects or this bill,” he added.

Despite that Republican opposition — and some resistance from progressives, particularly for the provision that would halt funding for the United Nations agency that provides aid to Palestinians, known as UNRWA — the spending package is expected to clear the House with support from centrist Democrats and Republicans. 

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) said Thursday that he expects “a substantial majority” of Democrats will vote for the bill.

The legislation will then head to the Senate, where lawmakers are expected to quickly take up the package to stave off a shutdown and swiftly depart Washington for a two-week Easter recess.

Despite fears that final passage would drag into the weekend, the upper chamber is widely expected to greenlight the minibus at some point Friday and avoid a temporary partial shutdown.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) said Tuesday that he had told his GOP colleagues that they were “likely to be here this weekend,” but the thinking on that has changed. 

Senate leaders have been working for two weeks — dating back to the last government funding deadline — on a universe of amendments. One source said top Republicans were hopeful to keep the final number of amendments under a dozen.

Among the GOP amendments that could receive a vote are those proposed by Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), a top critic of the package who, however, is not expected to hold up final passage and will allow time to be yielded back in order to win amendment votes on items related to cutting spending.

“Our concern is that the level of spending that would be rooting in this spending bill will lead to a $1.5 trillion deficit, and we think the biggest threat to our country is our debt. … So we’ll have amendments to cut spending,” Paul said. “We think it’s really important that there be a debate over the level of debt our country is encountering.”

Amendment votes related to the situation at the southern border are also expected, including potentially the Laken Riley Act that Senate Republicans introduced last week. Sen. Ted Budd (R-N.C.) called for that to be included in the amendment package during a press conference Thursday.

Other Senate business is playing into the hopes of getting the package over the finish line Friday — a number of congressional delegations are set to leave this weekend to kick off the two-week recess.

Members are also mindful that the funeral for the mother of Senate Appropriations Committee ranking member Susan Collins (R-Maine) is being held in her home state Saturday.

Alexander Bolton and Sarah Fortinsky contributed.

Updated at 9:14 pm EDT