House Speaker Kevin McCarthy proposed a deal to temporarily avert a U.S. government shutdown, including an 8% cut in domestic agency spending and resumption of border wall construction.
McCarthy presented the plan to Republican lawmakers in a conference call Sunday night after negotiators representing key factions within the House of Representatives agreed on demands to temporarily fund the government for 31 days. The House is scheduled to vote on the measure Thursday.
The demands, which also include provisions limiting immigrants’ ability to apply for asylum in the United States, are objectionable to most Democrats and are unlikely to be accepted by the Democratic-led Senate. This means the bill does not reduce the risk of closures.
The bill also does not include emergency war funding for Ukraine or disaster aid, including relief for victims of the Maui wildfires and hurricanes in Florida that President Joe Biden’s administration has requested.
McCarthy faced immediate opposition from some ultra-conservative Republicans, which could cause the plan to fail. Six far-right lawmakers quickly declared their opposition. Without Democratic support, McCarthy could only afford to lose four Republicans.
But if McCarthy and the plan’s authors can rally Republicans behind the strategy, it could clear the way for a House vote on the temporary funding proposal. Efforts to pass the funding measure in the House have stalled amid clashes between Republican hardliners and moderates.
McCarthy became so frustrated with hardliners’ opposition to any spending measures that he challenged them at a meeting on Thursday to try to oust him from his leadership role.
The new proposal comes after days of talks between leaders of the two main Republican factions. Representative Byron Donalds, a negotiator for the ultraconservative Freedom Caucus, and Dusty Johnson, leader of the more moderate Main Street Partnership, introduced the plan on a conference call .
Nonetheless, the plan quickly ran into opposition from the far right, jeopardizing its chances in the House of Representatives.
Rep. Rosa DeLauro, the top Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, said the Republican proposal was “extreme” and would “cut funding for the National Institutes of Health, including for cancer research, defund the police and Reduce resources to key allies” like Ukraine and Israel. ”
Earlier Sunday, McCarthy said he wanted to avoid a government shutdown that would reduce Republican influence in federal spending negotiations.
“I want to make sure we don’t shut down,” McCarthy said on Fox News Sunday morning futures. “I don’t think it’s a win for the American public, and I absolutely believe that if we shut down, our cards would be weaker.”
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