Congressional leaders unveil emergency legislation to prevent the shutdown

Congressional leaders on Sunday unveiled emergency legislation to avert a partial government shutdown, setting off a race to pass the bipartisan spending deal into law before a deadline at the end of the week.

The billthat emerged from a spending deal negotiated by Speaker Mike Johnson and Senator Chuck Schumer, the majority leader, would temporarily extend funding for some federal agencies until March 1 and for others until March 8. It would keep the government funded at current spending levels. levels, without any policy changes or conditions.

Faced with opposition from hardline Republicans in the House of Representatives and a razor-thin Republican majority, Mr. Johnson will most likely have to rely on the same coalition — made up of Democrats and mainstream Republicans — to pass the bill that both he and former Speaker Kevin McCarthy have adopted. have relied on keeping the government funded.

In a sign that Democrats were preparing to gather the bulk of votes to pass the bill, Representative Hakeem Jeffries of New York, the minority leader, signaled his support for the bill on Sunday evening. He wrote to his caucus that he “strongly supports efforts to move the appropriations process forward and avoid a disruptive partial government shutdown.”

Mr. Schumer said the Senate would begin the process of passing the bill, known as a continuing resolution, on Tuesday when lawmakers return to Washington. He noted that it will take “bipartisan cooperation in the Senate and House of Representatives to quickly pass the CR and send it to the President's desk before Friday's funding deadline.”

Far-right Republicans, who have expressed anger about the deal since Mr. Johnson first announced it last weekend — even begging him to abandon it — vented again Sunday evening at a private conference the speaker hosted to pass the legislation to take.

Privately and publicly, Mr. Johnson has framed the relief bill as a necessary measure that would allow lawmakers to continue passing the 12 individual spending bills that fund the government — a key demand of far-right Republicans.

“With completion deadlines looming, a short, continuing resolution is needed to complete what Republicans in the House of Representatives are working hard to achieve: an end to omnibus rule, meaningful policy victories, and better stewardship of America's tax dollars ” said Mr Johnson. a statement.

And he has said he has promoted major improvements to the debt limit deal that Mr. McCarthy negotiated with President Biden last year. Mr. Johnson noted that he had made concessions such as accelerating $10 billion in cuts to IRS enforcement and clawing back $6 billion in unused pandemic dollars and other emergency funds.

But those concessions have done little to soften his restive right flank, and some far-right lawmakers have begun to ignore the threat of a vote to impeach Mr. Johnson. That would leave him with the same fate as Mr McCarthy, after he relied on Democratic votes to avoid a shutdown in September.

“The @HouseGOP plans to pass a near-term spending bill that continues Pelosi-level Biden policies to buy time to pass longer-term Pelosi-level spending with Biden policies Biden policies,” the House Freedom Caucus wrote on social media. “This is what surrender looks like.”