A spending bill backed by Donald Trump failed in the US House of Representatives on Thursday, with dozens of Republicans challenging the US president-elect, leaving Congress without a clear plan to avert an imminent government shutdown that could cripple Christmas travel.
The vote revealed clear fault lines in Trump’s Republican Party, which may appear again next year when its members control the White House and both chambers of Congress.
Trump pressed lawmakers to wrap things up before he takes office on January 20, but members of the party’s right wing have refused to support a package that would increase spending and pave the way for a plan that would add trillions more to the federal government’s budget. $36 trillion in US debt.
“I’m absolutely fed up with a party that campaigns on fiscal responsibility and has the audacity to go to the American people and say you think this is fiscally responsible,” said Republican Rep. Chip Roy, one of 38 Republicans who voted against the bill.
The package fails hours after being assembled
The package failed by a vote of 174 to 235 just hours after it was hastily assembled by Republican leaders seeking to comply with Trump’s demands. A The previous agreement between the two parties was invalidated After Trump and the richest person in the world, Elon Musk, came out against it on Wednesday.
House Speaker Mike Johnson did not provide any details when reporters asked him about the next steps after the failed vote.
He added: “We will find another solution.”
Government funding is scheduled to end at midnight on Friday. If lawmakers fail to extend that deadline, the U.S. government will begin a partial shutdown that would cut funding for everything from border law enforcement to national parks and cut the paychecks of more than 2 million federal workers.
The US Transportation Security Administration warned that travelers during the busy holiday season may face long lines at airports.
The bill that failed on Thursday closely resembles an earlier version that Musk and Trump criticized as a wasteful giveaway to Democrats. It was supposed to extend government funding until March, and provide US$100 billion in disaster relief and debt suspension. Republicans dropped other items that were included in the original package, such as pay increases for lawmakers and new rules for pharmacy benefits managers.
At Trump’s urging, the new version would also suspend restrictions on the national debt for two years – a maneuver that would make it easier to pass the big tax cuts he promised.
Before the vote, Johnson told reporters that the package would avoid a filibuster and make it easier for lawmakers to cut hundreds of billions of dollars in spending when Trump takes office next year.
“The government is very big, it does a lot of things, and it only does a few things well,” he said.
Democrats criticize the bill
Democrats have criticized the bill as a cover for a budget-busting tax cut that would largely benefit wealthy backers like Musk, while saddled the country with trillions of dollars in additional debt.
“How dare you lecture America about fiscal responsibility, ever?” House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said during the debate.
Even if the bill had been approved in the House, it would have faced prolonged opposition in the Senate, which is currently controlled by Democrats. The White House said that US President Joe Biden does not support it.
Previous battles over the debt ceiling have spooked financial markets, as a US government default would send credit shocks around the world. That limit was suspended under an agreement that effectively expires on January 1, although lawmakers likely won’t have to address the issue before the spring.
When Trump returns to office, he aims to enact tax cuts that would reduce revenues by $8 trillion over a decade, which would push the debt higher without offsetting the spending cuts. He has pledged not to cut retirement and health benefits for seniors, which make up a large portion of the budget and are expected to grow significantly in the coming years.
The recent government shutdown happened In December 2018 And January 2019 during Trump’s first term in the White House.
The unrest also threatened to overthrow Johnson, a mild-mannered Louisianan He was unexpectedly thrust into the speaker’s office Last year after the right wing of the party They voted for then-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy On the draft government financing law. Johnson repeatedly had to turn to Democrats for help passing legislation when he couldn’t get votes from his party.
He tried the same maneuver on Thursday, but failed this time.
Many Republicans have said they will not vote for Johnson as president when Congress returns in January, potentially igniting another tumultuous leadership battle in the weeks before Trump takes office.
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