Congress eyes votes on major government funding bill to avoid shutdown this weekend
NBCMar 01
Congress Announces Bills to Avoid Partial Government Shutdown
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The Facts
Congressional leaders on Sunday announced a series of bills that will fund key parts of the government through the rest of Fiscal Year 2024, which ends in October. Congress hopes to pass the six-bill package to avoid Friday’s partial shutdown deadline.
Legislators will have at least 72 hours to read the bill before voting on it, and, if passed, it would fund agencies such as the Dept. of Justice and Dept. of Veterans Affairs, among others. Congress will need to pass another six spending bills before a March 22 deadline.
The Spin
Republican narrative
All things considered, Sunday’s spending package was a major victory for conservatives as Republicans were able to secure hefty spending cuts to several agencies while averting a government shutdown. It’s fair to say that the bill did not go far enough, but it would be impossible for Republicans to achieve all of their policy goals when the House is basically split 50-50 and the Senate is controlled by Democrats. Compromise was necessary to avoid a shutdown, and Speaker Johnson did a good job negotiating this deal.
Democratic narrative
Responsible members of Congress came together to negotiate Sunday's spending bill as far-right Republicans did all they could to push for a government shutdown. For months, Congress has been forced to pass stopgap spending bills to avoid government shutdowns because Speaker Johnson is being held hostage by the fringe of his party. Johnson knows that he can never win with his far-right colleagues, but he has to placate them by spinning his agreements. Johnson had no choice but to take his minor wins, but he is marketing a few spending cuts to his base.
