Lawmakers joined forces on Friday to approve funding for the government, ensuring that operations in Washington continue smoothly until early next year and averting a potential shutdown during the Christmas season. The funding package, spearheaded by Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), maintains current government funding levels through March 14, extends the farm bill for a year, and allocates significant funds for disaster relief and assistance for farmers. This legislative agreement emerged following a tumultuous week marked by multiple spending proposals, input from President-elect Trump and his close associate, Elon Musk, and speculation regarding Speaker Johnson’s future in his leadership role.
Here are the key players and outcomes from the recent government funding ordeal:
WINNERS
Elon Musk
Elon Musk demonstrated his sway in Capitol Hill this week, showcasing his influence within the House GOP conference. The billionaire entrepreneur and Trump ally publicly opposed Johnson’s initial bipartisan spending plan, prompting a wave of Republican dissent. As a result, the proposal never advanced to a floor vote due to widespread disapproval. Amid concerns over Johnson’s leadership, some GOP members floated Musk as a potential Speaker, highlighting their admiration for the SpaceX and Tesla CEO. While an unconventional choice, this gesture underscored their dissatisfaction with Johnson’s performance. Notably, a House Speaker is not required to be a sitting House member.
Federal Employees
Federal workers can now breathe a sigh of relief with the passage of the recent stopgap measure, alleviating concerns about mass furloughs for the next few months. The absence of a government shutdown in nearly six years is a welcome development for government employees, who faced furloughs and pay disruptions during the last shutdown in 2018 and 2019, the longest in recent history.
Farmers
Farmers received a much-needed boost with $10 billion in economic aid included in the bill, in response to Republican demands for additional support. The legislation also extends the 2018 farm bill for another year, as Congress failed to secure a longer-term extension. Some Republicans expressed disappointment over the removal of provisions related to year-round E15 ethanol sales.
Disaster Aid
The bill allocated approximately $100 billion in disaster relief, addressing the mounting pressure on congressional leadership to provide assistance in affected regions.
Following hurricanes Helene and Milton, a substantial portion of the relief funds, approximately $30 billion, will be allocated to the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s disaster relief fund to address the urgent needs highlighted during hurricane season. The legislation also includes funding for the Small Business Administration as their disaster loan program had exhausted its resources in October.
During the negotiations, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries expressed his opposition to tying a debt ceiling increase to government funding discussions, which was a demand from former President Trump. Ultimately, Jeffries successfully prevented a debt ceiling increase from being included in the final spending proposal, citing it as a victory for Democrats.
Although Jeffries supported the final proposal put forth by Speaker Johnson, this decision led to the exclusion of numerous Democratic-backed provisions, such as those related to prescription drugs, child cancer research, and pandemic preparedness. Representative Rosa DeLauro criticized the final package on the House floor, emphasizing that essential services were being compromised.
On the other side, Representative Chip Roy gained prominence for his opposition to the debt ceiling increase without corresponding spending cuts. Roy’s vocal stance drew attention, including criticism from Trump on social media, leading to speculation about potential primary challenges in Texas.
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In a Truth Social post, Trump labeled Roy as “unpopular” and accused him of hindering Republican success for personal gain. Roy responded by stating, “No apologies,” emphasizing his stance on the debt ceiling and spending cuts negotiations.
Speaker Mike Johnson managed to avoid a shutdown and wrap up the 118th Congress but faced backlash from House Republicans, particularly hardliners and Trump. This backlash could impact Johnson’s bid to retain the Speaker position in the upcoming election.
Some GOP lawmakers, including Rep. Andy Harris, expressed uncertainties about supporting Johnson in the future. Despite Trump’s silence on Johnson’s final spending deal, the agreement did not include the president’s primary demand of a debt limit increase, potentially causing tension.
Johnson remains confident in his re-election prospects as Speaker. There is disappointment from both parties over the loss of bipartisan proposals for pharmaceutical benefit manager industry reforms and the removal of language regarding RFK Stadium from the funding package.
President Biden successfully averted a shutdown and secured a significant portion of his disaster relief request. Despite previous suggestions from Trump, Biden managed to navigate the funding challenges effectively.
The total of the infrastructure package was updated to approximately $115 billion. The final bill that was approved on Friday closely matched the initial request, disregarding the calls from hardline conservatives urging for it to be rejected without offsets. Despite achieving these victories, President Biden received substantial criticism for his absence from the public eye during the funding negotiations. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was pressed by reporters to explain why President Biden had not made any public statements regarding the shutdown. In response, she stated that he was following a strategic approach that had been utilized in the past.
“This is a strategy that we have employed numerous times before, not the first time,” Jean-Pierre explained. “This is an issue for Republicans in Congress, specifically in the House, to resolve as they are the ones who created this situation. There was a bipartisan agreement in place.”
It is plausible that President Biden’s deliberate absence from the spotlight was a calculated move. The Democrats and the White House may have believed that public criticism of Trump or congressional Republicans by Biden would not have been conducive to getting the bill passed. However, this decision led to a perception that the current president was disengaged and relinquishing the stage to his successor. A recent report by The Wall Street Journal criticized White House aides for allegedly shielding a declining Biden, further exacerbating the president’s challenges.
Biden has been facing increasing scrutiny from Democrats who are disappointed by their losses in the recent elections, which saw them lose the White House and Senate majority while failing to secure the House. The president’s efforts to reassure the party faithful seemed inadequate this week.
President-elect Trump holds significant influence over House Republicans, evident in how swiftly they responded to his directives when he pushed for including a debt ceiling increase in the week’s package. However, 38 House Republicans defied his calls by voting against a bill that included a two-year suspension of the debt ceiling.
The final bill passed by the House did not include a debt ceiling increase, in direct contradiction to one of the president-elect’s key demands. Senator Johnson, who was closely involved in the process, informed reporters that he maintained constant communication with President Trump throughout the negotiations and had spoken with the president-elect shortly before the vote.
“He was fully informed about our actions and the reasoning behind them, and I believe this outcome is beneficial for the nation,” Johnson remarked. “I am confident that he is pleased with this result as well.”
As of now, Trump has not publicly commented on the final legislation. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the most up-to-date news, weather, sports, and streaming video, visit The Hill.
