Freedom Caucus member says continuing resolution may be needed to avoid government shutdown
Cami Mondeaux
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When Congress returns from its six-week recess, lawmakers will be faced with a tight deadline to pass all its spending bills before the end of September or risk a government shutdown. The 18-day window doesn’t provide a lot of room for error, but not all Congress members are scrambling to get the must-pass legislation to the president’s desk.
Congress has until the end of September to pass its annual budget before the new fiscal year begins on Oct. 1. The House managed to pass one of the 12 appropriations bills before leaving town for recess, while the Senate has yet to advance any — putting the two chambers on separate timelines as they return to Capitol Hill next month.
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The budget process has also been complicated within the House GOP conference as several members of the Freedom Caucus have sparred with Speaker Kevin McCarty (R-CA) over key spending bills, threatening to withhold their support altogether if their demands aren’t met. The Freedom Caucus has not established a position on any of the spending legislation, but many of its members are aligned on what they want to see from leadership in exchange for their votes.
As a result, Rep. Dan Bishop (R-NC), a prominent conservative in the caucus, said it may be “implausible” for the House to finish drafting its budget before the Sept. 30 deadline.
“I would say it’s implausible that we’re going to have all the appropriations bills done within the couple of weeks of legislative time we’ve got when we’re back,” Bishop told the Washington Examiner. “There probably is going to have to be a short-term continuing resolution. But even that should only come with conditions that advance the interests of the American people.”
It’s unclear whether the House would approve a continuing resolution, an agreement that allows the government to operate at the same spending levels until a new budget is passed, with some hard-line conservatives saying they would oppose such a measure.
“I will not vote for a CR. I will not vote for a rule for a CR. I will not help advance a CR in any way, shape, or form,” Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) said last week. “[Not] unless H.R. 2 is signed into law, [Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro] Mayorkas is gone, or something damn close to that.”
That sentiment could lead to a temporary shutdown until spending measures are negotiated, which Bishop said would not amount to a worst-case scenario.
“I’m not anxious for a shutdown, but I don’t fear one,” he said.
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Instead, Bishop laid out his own demands he would like to see met before voting for any budgetary agreements.
Like several other members of the Freedom Caucus, Bishop is pushing GOP leaders to keep spending levels at fiscal 2022 levels — a deal he said was made with McCarthy during the speaker’s election in January. That puts the House on a collision course with Senate Democrats, who are likely drafting budgets with a much larger number.
Julia Johnson contributed to this report.