Factions are forming on Capitol Hill over how to avoid a shutdown in three weeks. Here’s a breakdown of what key groups are gunning for ahead of Sept. 30.
GOP FISCAL HAWKS AND THE WHITE HOUSE — This group wants a stopgap bill to go through January or later, rather than a shorter patch that could lead to a more comprehensive funding agreement.
Repeatedly kicking the can on funding bills is part of OMB Director Russ Vought’s strategy to slash spending. It would allow Republicans to muscle through rescissions and reconciliation packages to add or subtract funding without relying on Democrats.
But the partisan tactic would cost GOP appropriators, who are attempting to stay relevant as President Donald Trump skirts lawmakers’ power of the purse.
Caught in the middle of it all is Speaker Mike Johnson, who will have to decide whether to push through a funding plan backed by Trump but not Democrats. He did it successfully in March, but Senate Democrats may be less willing to cooperate.
“They jammed us last time,” Sen. Brian Schatz (Hawaii), a top Dem appropriator, said in an interview. “And I am encouraging my Republican friends who want to do appropriations to understand that that won’t work this time.”
DEMOCRATS AND GOP APPROPRIATORS — This group wants a short-term extension to fund the government through November or December, giving appropriators more time to negotiate a bipartisan deal. Johnson and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries recently discussed the possibility.
Democrats warn there will be a funding lapse if Republicans refuse to negotiate with them. Democrats haven’t tied themselves to specific funding ultimatums and instead are floating other ways for Republicans to win their support. One possible concession would be a deal to extend Affordable Care Act tax credits that expire at year’s end.
Top House and Senate appropriators are considering a hybrid approach: A full year of updated funding levels for the USDA, the VA and congressional operations paired with short-term extensions of other agencies to give appropriators more time to negotiate.
But as of last week, Senate Majority Leader John Thune and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer hadn’t spoken about the shutdown deadline – evidence that bipartisan talks still have a long way to go.
What else we’re watching:
— Rules change Monday: Thune will take the first procedural steps on the Senate floor Monday to lay the groundwork for changing rules on nominations later this week, according to a person granted anonymity to talk about the plans. The push to speed up the confirmation of Trump’s nominees comes after Democrats balked at confirming a batch of the president’s picks before August recess.
— Epstein latest: Reps. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) are inching closer to reaching the 218 signatures required to force a vote to compel the release of the Epstein files. They’ll get one more Democrat’s signature once Rep. Eric Swalwell (Calif.) returns to Washington this week. They hope to collect the last two signatures by the end of month after two special elections to fill vacant seats formerly held by the late Democratic Reps. Gerry Connolly (Va.) and Raúl Grijalva (Ariz.). Democrats are likely to hold onto both seats.
— PBM reform moving: Senate Finance Chair Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) said his staff is in talks with aides to ranking member Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) about moving legislation this fall that would overhaul the practices of pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs. It’s an indication of real momentum around reviving a policy agreement that’s been stalled since it fell out of a government funding bill last year.
Jennifer Scholtes, Jordain Carney, Katherine Tully-McManus and Benjamin Guggenheim contributed to this report.
