Topline
The Senate followed a heavily Democrat-led effort in the House on Saturday to approve a last-minute stopgap measure that funds the federal government for another 45 days just hours before a shutdown would have begun, keeping a slew of government services running and federal employees paid for the time being, though lawmakers still need to finalize a permanent set of budget appropriations.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer walks into a closed-door caucus meeting after the House … [+]
Key Facts
The Senate voted 88-9 late Saturday evening on a stopgap measure called a continuing resolution, averting a shutdown with wide-ranging consequences that would have started at 12:01 a.m. EDT Sunday morning.
The House overwhelmingly passed the bill Saturday afternoon 335-91 (Democrats voted 209-1; Republicans voted 126-90), though it leaves out federal funding Democrats and some Republicans had called for in military aid to Ukraine.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) both said they want to restore Ukraine funding in the final budget.
Crucial Quote
“MAGA Republicans won nothing,” Schumer said before the final vote.
Key Background
House Democrats had roundly praised the GOP-proposed resolution, though it did not include the Ukraine military aid funding Democrats had requested. The budget crisis was created by the GOP’s far-right Freedom Caucus, which insisted on drastic funding cuts and openly went to war with their own Speaker, Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.). Had a shutdown gone into effect, it would have been the first in nearly four years, and would have put tens of thousands of federal employees on unpaid leave. The Department of the Interior had also announced earlier this week that a shutdown would have forced it to close the majority of its National Parks and Monuments, while other public services, including public health inspections and small business loans, would have also been put on hold.
Tangent
Members of the Freedom Caucus fumed on social media after their loss, with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene saying on X she wasn’t “going to fund a government that has a weaponized Department of Justice that is constantly prosecuting President Trump, pro-life protesters, and anybody they deem a political enemy.” Others taunted the Caucus after the bill passed, with Rep. Alexandra Ocasio Cortez posting, “People will get paychecks and [Marjorie Taylor Greene]
threw a tantrum on the way out. Win-win.”
Further Reading
House Approves Last-Minute Stopgap To Avert Government Shutdown—Leaves Out Funding For Ukraine (Forbes)
Democrats Join McCarthy In Celebrating Budget Stopgap—And Taunting MAGA Wing (Forbes)
Rep. Bowman Faces Expulsion Calls After He Triggered Capitol Fire Alarm Before Crucial Vote (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/brianbushard/2023/09/30/government-shutdown-averted-senate-approves-last-minute-stopgap-bill/