Congress returned to Washington, D.C., on Monday and lawmakers wasted no time launching partisan attacks over their dueling plans to avert a looming government shutdown.
Republicans are pushing for a stopgap spending measure that would keep the government running until next spring and includes a controversial bill requiring voters to show proof of citizenship when they register to vote.
House Speaker Mike Johnson said lawmakers should both keep the federal government funded and secure the federal election process.
“Congress has a responsibility to do both, and we must ensure that only American citizens can decide American elections,” Johnson said.
Democrats counter that any continuing resolution should not extend past the end of the year and must be “clean,” meaning free of non-spending measures.
“In order to prevent a GOP-driven government shutdown that would hurt everyday Americans, Congress must pass a short-term continuing resolution … that is free from partisan policy changes,” Democratic Minority Leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries said.
Congress must pass some kind of spending bill by Sept. 30 to keep the government funded and prevent a shutdown, which most analysts believe could harm House majority Republicans at the ballot box.
That dynamic could give Democrats some leverage as they face three weeks of political gamesmanship.
For now, Johnson is bowing to the demands of the most right-wing members of his Republican conference by teeing up a vote this week on a bill that would keep the federal government funded for six more months and require states to obtain proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate or passport, when registering a person to vote.
Democrats say it’s already illegal for non-citizens to vote and accuse Republicans of wanting to make it harder for people to sign up to cast a ballot.
Democrats plan to oppose the initial GOP effort almost unanimously and Johnson is unlikely to be able to win over all Republicans, some of whom oppose stopgap spending plans on principle.
Assuming the GOP bill fails, Johnson and Jeffries will likely start haggling over a compromise.
