The government could shut down after next Friday. House Republicans still need a plan
The deadline to pass funding is the end of the day next Friday, Nov. 17.
Newly elected Speaker Mike Johnson has yet to reveal his plan for how the House will work to avert a government shutdown that would take effect in about one week unless Congress acts.
The deadline to pass a plan is the end of the day next Friday, Nov. 17. The House left for the week on Thursday -- leaving just a few days for deals to be made when House lawmakers return on Monday.
Johnson has said multiple times that his funding plan will be available soon, but members are still in the dark. A proposal could likely emerge Friday or Saturday.
House Republican leaders have indicated that they plan to set a vote as early as next Tuesday on their funding bill. The Senate would then have to take it up before Friday night to avert a shutdown.
The easiest option to avoid a shutdown next week is to pass another short-term funding bill -- also known as a continuing resolution or CR -- that would keep government funded at current levels. Lawmakers have suggested this CR could last until either mid-December, sometime in January or even April.
Republicans are weighing multiple options in the House, sources tell ABC News:
- A straightforward stopgap bill at current spending levels to a TBD date (this has bipartisan support)
- A stopgap bill with added sweeteners, likely related to border security (this does not have bipartisan support)
- A complicated idea to extend funding for government agencies in two separate batches, which is called a "laddered" approach (this also does not have bipartisan support)
Johnson seems to be running into the same problems as his predecessor, Kevin McCarthy, who had to carefully maneuver between moderates and hard-right conservatives in his conference before his historic ouster.
He faces a mixed-bag of political positions that he will have to maneuver around: Some Republicans have already announced they don't like the idea of a clean CR; some are rooting for steep off-setting budget cuts; some Republicans want controversial border policies attached.
Johnson has indicated he supports a clean CR and says he's hopeful he will get conservatives on board. When McCarthy made this same move at the end of September, he lost his job when hard-liners revolted.
It's possible Johnson won't face the same fate as McCarthy, however, because he is so new to the role – elected less than a month ago. Republicans have repeatedly said they hope to give Johnson some leeway to find his footing.
Johnson has argued a clean CR will give Congress more time to pass their yearlong funding bills. But he is also weighing the “laddered approach.” This would be a heavier lift and would move the government closer to a shutdown.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries has made clear Democrats will accept only a clean continuing resolution.
At a news conference Thursday, Jeffries said if Republicans don't work in a bipartisan way to fund the government, "then the only approach is to pass a continuing resolution at the fiscal year 2023 levels.”
He also smacked down the laddered CR approach, saying it is needlessly complicated and that the plan would "crash and burn the economy."
What about aid for Ukraine, Israel?
Separately, the fate of the Biden administration's $106 billion supplemental request for aid to Israel, Ukraine, the southern border and Taiwan is still unclear.
The House passed a stand-alone bill with Israel funding, but it included deep cuts to IRS funding, which was a nonstarter in the Senate.
Senate appropriators have said they are working on their own supplemental plan that would deal with both Ukraine and Israel aid.
There's also a small bipartisan group of senators working on a package of border policies. But it’s unlikely they will come together in the next week with a finalized plan.
It's unclear if any additional aid for Ukraine and Israel will be attached to a potential stopgap funding bill.
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