Washington, United States

The United States House of Representatives has passed a temporary bipartisan bill to avert a government shutdown just hours ahead of a midnight deadline on Saturday (Sep 30) with overwhelming Democratic support. The bill is now set up for a Senate vote over funding the federal government for another 45 days.

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About the ‘stopgap’ bill

In a dramatic turn of events at the US Capitol, House Republicans scrambled to pass a temporary bill to keep the government open for 45 more days, hours ahead of the deadline. 

Republican Speaker Kevin McCarthy backed down from an earlier demand by party hardliners for a partisan bill with only Republican votes, which could threaten his position as the speaker of the House. 

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The US government continues to run out of time to avoid the federal government’s fourth partial shutdown in a decade, which begins at 0401 GMT unless the Senate also passes the bill and US President Joe Biden signs it into law in time.

The stopgap funding bill which was passed in the House of Representatives, averting a shutdown has now been sent to the Democratic-majority Senate. The House voted 335-91 to fund the government until mid-November with more Democrats supporting the bill than Republicans. 

This came after McCarthy earlier on Saturday said that he would propose a 45-day continuing resolution (CR) plan or a stopgap bill which would keep federal agencies open until Congress can agree on a new funding bill.

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The bill has been described as a win for the Democrats as 209 Democrats supported the bill, far more than the 126 Republicans. “Extreme MAGA Republicans have lost, the American people have won,” top House Democrat Hakeem Jeffries told reporters ahead of the Senate vote. 

The bill includes natural disaster relief funding which the White House had requested but not the $6 billion in funding to aid Ukraine. 

What happens now?

The bill still needs to be approved by the Senate but it is expected to pass. 

A shutdown could have a devastating impact on the US as it would place tens of thousands of federal employees on furlough without pay and would lead to the suspension of various government services, while only those deemed essential for public safety would continue.

The move also marked a profound shift from earlier in the week in which a US government shutdown seemed inevitable. 

MaCarthy’s shift has won the support of top Senate Republican Mitch McConnell, who previously backed a similar measure moving through the Senate with broad bipartisan support. However, the House version dropped aid for Ukraine. 

This debate is likely to repeat in mid-November when the temporary measure expires given the fundamental disagreements between Democrats and Republicans over government spending and policies. 

Not to mention the infighting among House Republicans which is said to have brought Congress to a standoff over government spending. 

‘Go ahead and try’

The numerous efforts to pass spending bills have been repeatedly thwarted in recent weeks by a rebel faction of Republican lawmakers who have demanded significant cuts and threatened to vote the House speaker out.

When asked if he was concerned that hardline Republicans could try to oust him as leader, McCarthy dismissed the concerns. “I want to be the adult in the room, go ahead and try,” the House speaker told reporters.

He added, “And you know what? If I have to risk my job for standing up for the American public, I will do that.” 

(With inputs from agencies) 

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