House Republicans eye short-term spending deal as shutdown looms
By David Morgan
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -With a possible partial government shutdown looming in two weeks, House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Sunday said he would bring a defense spending bill to a vote «win or lose» this week, despite resistance from hardline fellow Republicans.McCarthy is struggling to bring fiscal 2024 spending legislation to the House floor, with Republicans fractured by conservative demands for spending to be cut to a 2022 level of $1.47 trillion — $120 billion below the spending on which McCarthy agreed with Biden in May.
Late on Sunday, members of the hardline House Freedom Caucus and the more moderate Main Street Caucus announced a deal on a short-term stopgap bill to keep the government open until October 31, but with a spending cut of more than 8% on agencies apart from the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs.
The measure, which is unlikely to become law, also includes conservative restrictions on immigration and the U.S. border with Mexico. It does not include funding for Ukraine, which Biden had requested.
Republicans have said that such a deal could allow the House to move forward on the defense spending bill this week.
But it was unclear whether the measure had sufficient Republican support to pass the chamber. The spending cuts were also likely to draw opposition from Democrats in the House and Senate, who reject the immigration provisions.
Republicans hold a narrow 221-212 majority in the chamber as they bicker over spending and pursue a new impeachment drive against President Joe Biden while the United States faces a possible fourth partial government shutdown in a decade.
McCarthy has begun to face calls for floor action seeking his ouster from hardline
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