The House Rules Committee is taking up House Republicans’ short-term spending bill this afternoon. It’s the first step on the bill’s path to the House floor, where its passage is not a sure bet.
The measure, known as a continuing resolution (CR), would extend government funding past the Sept. 30 expiration date through Oct. 31. It includes spending cuts and several of the GOP’s desired border policies.
The bill is seen as dead on arrival in the Democratic-controlled Senate. But getting this particular stopgap signed into law may not be the end goal.
The Hill’s Emily Brooks and Mychael Schnell explained that “the bill is meant to show a united front among House Republicans and be an opening offer in negotiations to keep the government open past Sept. 30 — echoing the conference’s strategy from earlier this year revolving around the debt ceiling increase.”
The bill was negotiated by leaders of the conservative House Freedom Caucus and members of the Main Street Caucus, which describes its members as pragmatic conservatives.
But if the presentation of a united GOP is the more limited goal of this CR, it may fall short. The Hill’s running whip list shows that, according to statements from several House Republicans, there’s not enough party-line support in the chamber to pass the CR. Check out the whip list here.
More coverage from The Hill: Here’s what’s in Republicans’ proposed deal to prevent a shutdown
