Sept. 30 (UPI) — The House of Representatives on Saturday passed a Republican-sponsored 45-day stopgap government funding resolution with the help of Democrats in a bid to avert a looming government shutdown.
The final vote tally was 335-91, more than the two-thirds needed for passage.
The measure now moves to the Senate and then on to the White House where it must by signed by President Joe Biden.
The measure does not include additional funding for Ukraine as sought by Democrats or for border security as demanded by hardline GOP rebels led by Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Saturday reversed course and offered the “clean” stopgap spending bill as only hours remained to avoid a government shutdown.
Previous stopgap measures had failed as the federal government faced a shutdown at 12:01 a.m. Sunday.
McCarthy spent Saturday morning meeting with his Republican colleagues aiming to gather support for the latest short-term measure, admitting his job as speaker is at stake with his support for a “clean” measure, which unlike previous versions did not contain measures sought by hardline GOP members such as additional border security funding.
The right-wing lawmakers have also pushed for deeper spending cuts in order to avoid the shutdown. Those cuts would include ending billions in foreign aid for Ukraine, which the stopgap measure continued to contain.
A McCarthy-backed measure failed by a 198-232 vote Friday with 21 Republicans joining Democrats in opposition.
“There’s only one person to blame for any potential government shutdown, and that’s Matt Gaetz. He’s not a conservative Republican. He’s a charlatan,” Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., said Friday.
Gaetz is an outspoken member of the far-right House Freedom Caucus.
Before Saturday’s vote, House Democrats reviewed the proposal to gauge its support, but the lack of funding for Ukraine initially appeared to be a major obstacle.
“It’s a huge problem” Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., told reporters Saturday afternoon.
“I think if we had a clean (bill) without Ukraine on it, we could probably be able to move that through,” McCarthy told reporters Friday.
“I think if the Senate puts Ukraine on there and focuses Ukraine over America, I think I think that could cause real problems.”
Republicans hold a four-seat majority in the House, meaning they needed Democratic support in order to pass any bill.
A total of 21 Republicans indicated Friday they would not support a stopgap bill as currently constituted.
The Senate passed its own stopgap measure on Thursday, by a 76-22 vote with House Republicans saying they would not support it.
A government shutdown would equate to federal workers being forced to work without pay. That includes vital positions like Border Patrol agents and employees of the Federal Aviation Administration.
