House Republicans have scrapped a controversial proposed continuing resolution to avoid a government shutdown. This comes after President-elect Donald Trump and X owner Elon Musk led the charge against the proposed measure.
When House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) brought out the 1,574-page bill, conservative Republican lawmakers balked, criticizing the amount of pork infused into the proposal. Many, including Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), complained that lawmakers were expected to vote in favor of a bill they could not read before the deadline.
Leaders in Congress on Tuesday unveiled a lengthy stopgap measure to keep the government funded into the spring, with just days to go to prevent a government shutdown.
Congress has until Friday night to stave off a funding lapse, since lawmakers approved a continuing resolution in September to keep the government funded through Dec. 20. The new stopgap measure, with approval from the House, Senate and President Biden, would keep the government funded through March 14, giving lawmakers more time to reach agreement on new spending bills when the GOP controls both the House and the Senate.
The 1,500 page stopgap measure also includes a one-year extension of the farm bill, around $100 billion in disaster aid and $10 billion in economic assistance to farmers.
The continuing resolution’s release comes under the wire, with House leaders under pressure to abide by a 72-hour rule for members to review legislation before it’s brought to the floor. Johnson said Tuesday morning that he believes in adhering to the rule, but with the end of week deadline fast approaching, he may be out of options.
The speaker also said that House Republican leadership is committed to passing the continuing resolution through the regular process, including by going through the House Rules Committee, where it’s almost certain to face opposition from GOP hardliners that could further slow the path to passage.
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President-elect Donald Trump has been vocal in his opposition to the measure, and has argued in favor of a more stripped-down bill. “The most foolish and inept thing ever done by Congressional Republicans was allowing our country to hit the debt ceiling in 2025. It was a mistake and is now something that must be addressed,” he wrote in a post on Truth Social.
Meanwhile, Congress is considering a spending bill that would give sweetheart provisions for government censors and for Liz Cheney. The bill would make it easier to hide the records of the corrupt January 6 committee—which accomplished nothing for the American people and hid security failures that happened that day. This bill would also give Congress a pay increase while many Americans are struggling this Christmas.
Increasing the debt ceiling is not great but we’d rather do it on Biden’s watch. If Democrats won’t cooperate on the debt ceiling now, what makes anyone think they would do it in June during our administration? Let’s have this debate now. And we should pass a streamlined spending bill that doesn’t give Chuck Schumer and the Democrats everything they want.
Republicans want to support our farmers, pay for disaster relief, and set our country up for success in 2025. The only way to do that is with a temporary funding bill WITHOUT DEMOCRAT GIVEAWAYS combined with an increase in the debt ceiling. Anything else is a betrayal of our country…
During an appearance on Fox News, Trump said Johnson would “easily remain Speaker” in the next Congress if he removes “all of the traps being set by Democrats” in the continuing resolution. He suggested that lawmakers who support the current measure “should be primaried and disposed of as quickly as possible.
Several other conservative Republican lawmakers have also spoken out against the measure. Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY) said, “Everything I am hearing about the CR thus far leads me to believe that I’ll be voting NO.”
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) called it a “three-month omnibus” and further cautioned, “The Christmas CR lump of coal comes with a warning. Beware the Ides of March.”
Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) declared, “The Swamp is going to Swamp. This is not the way to do business.”
In various posts on X, Elon Musk called the CR “One of the worst bills ever written” and said it “contains major spending increases and changes to the law.’
One of the worst bills ever written https://t.co/SxVyyXb82y
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 18, 2024
Exactly, it contains major spending increases and changes to the law.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 18, 2024
That is NOT a “continuing” resolution. https://t.co/rc2C8Cvoq4
Johnson and other lawmakers, including Democrats, argue that the continuing resolution, despite its flaws, is essential for preventing a government shutdown. The speaker insisted that the measure is needed to “keep the government functioning until we can implement more substantial changes.”
The barrage of criticism appears to have prompted Johnson to consider supporting a clean bill to extend government funding and avoid a shutdown. But, so far, he has not publicly indicated whether he intends to take that course of action.
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