Schumer urges Congress to ‘get on the same page’ as government funding deadline nears
Samantha-Jo Roth
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Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said the Senate’s No. 1 priority needs to be avoiding a “pointless shutdown,” imploring colleagues in the House to treat the situation with urgency despite an impasse over a set of demands by hard-line conservatives.
Last week, the White House called on Congress to pass a short-term continuing resolution to keep the government funded past Sept. 30, allowing lawmakers more time to negotiate a deal for the coming fiscal year. However, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) faces resistance to even this temporary measure from some in his conference who are openly embracing the idea of a government shutdown.
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“By the end of this month, the House and the Senate, Democrats and Republicans, all must get on the same page about keeping the government open and avoiding a pointless shutdown,” Schumer said during a speech on the Senate floor on Tuesday, their first day back in the chamber in six weeks.
Ahead of the August recess, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved all 12 bills in line with the caps laid out in the debt ceiling deal negotiated by President Joe Biden and McCarthy. The agreement limits overall national security spending in fiscal 2024 to $886 billion, which is roughly a 3% increase from current levels. In fiscal 2025, defense spending would be capped at $895 billion, a 1% increase from the previous year.
“Look no further than the example we have set here in a bipartisan way in the Senate. Democrats working with Republicans on a bipartisan basis, chairs, Democratic chairs engaging fruitfully with Republican vice chairs and ranking members,” Schumer said. “It is a very good template for how things should work in Congress.”
This all sets up a clash with the GOP-led House, where many members opposed the debt ceiling deal and refused to vote for it. Many conservatives, angry that the deal did not cut spending further, have strong-armed the speaker into lower top lines that Democrats refuse to pass.
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Time is running out. While the Senate returned to Capitol Hill Tuesday, the House is scheduled to meet next week, leaving them just 11 days before the government’s fiscal year ends on Sept. 30.
The full House only managed to clear one of the 12 must-pass measures before leaving town for recess.