While the United States looks to be headed--again--towards a government shutdown, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) has signaled Democrats may come out in support of a Republican stopgap bill. "Jeffries suggests Democrats could support GOP stopgap funding bill," a Monday headline from The Hill read. At the very least, it's not a no, with Jeffries having signaled strong opposition in the past as he threw out insults against House Republicans, as he's so very prone to doing.
"At this time, we are carefully evaluating the proposal set forth by Republican leadership and discussing it with Members," Jeffries wrote in a letter to House Democrats, which CNN's Manu Raju also shared.
In new letter, House Democratic leaders non-committal on Speaker Johnson’s funding plan, saying they are “carefully evaluating” it pic.twitter.com/sGtZ04WciM
— Manu Raju (@mkraju) November 13, 2023
As The Hill noted, also mentioning the Biden administration's opposition to how House Republicans have moved forward such bills:
In a letter to all House Democrats, Jeffries stopped short of saying party leaders are ready to endorse the GOP proposal, known as a continuing resolution (CR), which was introduced by Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) over the weekend.
But he also didn’t rule it out.
...
The letter marks a sharp change of tone from just last week, when Democratic leaders had skewered Republicans for floating a “laddered” budget approach, which carves government funding into separate pots to be considered on different timetables.
Jeffries had characterized the idea as “another extreme right-wing policy joyride … that would only crash and burn the federal government.”
“It’s a nonstarter,” he said Thursday during his weekly press briefing.
And the Biden administration piled on after Johnson unveiled legislation on Saturday, accusing Republicans of “wasting precious time with an unserious proposal.”
Jeffries, as Townhall has covered at length, is so often prone to dismissing House Republicans--still in the majority no matter how small that majority may be--as "extreme" or "MAGA Republican." Even if Jeffries wouldn't come out fully in favor of the stopgap, this is definitely still progress.
As The Hill also reported, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has endorsed the measure.
At the same time, the stopgap bill faces opposition from Speaker Mike Johnson's (R-LA) fellow Republicans, especially Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX), who voiced his strong views earlier on Monday during a press conference and over his X account.
Understand that every time there is a so-called “continuing resolution,” it includes crap like extending policies that have been used to advance #COVIDTyranny. I can swallow temporary extension if we are getting actual “wins” on… well… ANYTHING. But not just a punt. #NoPelosiCR pic.twitter.com/hGq9CjYh6N
— Chip Roy (@chiproytx) November 13, 2023
2) Roy: Like what I want, you know, would be way over here saying, fine, let's go in here and let's go into shutdown and fight over the border. I don't mind sitting here. I'll eat my Thanksgiving dinner, sitting right on the floor of the House.
— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) November 13, 2023
4) Roy: I'm happy to try to put 217 votes together to try to accomplish something, at least get something for the American people, cut some spending, try to restrain the size of government. And that's where I was hoping that we were headed.
— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) November 13, 2023
5) Roy: Unfortunately, the bill that was put out yesterday or whatever that was Saturday, does not do that.
— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) November 13, 2023
Should Democrats vote to support the stopgap bill, it won't be the first time they've swooped in when House Republicans have lost some votes from their own party members. More Democrats than Republicans voted in late September to avoid a government shutdown and earlier this year to raise the debt ceiling.
Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) was ousted as speaker last month when Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) filed a motion to vacate the chair not long after Congress passed a continuing resolution (CR) just before the September 30 deadline.
There is a Friday deadline to avert a goverment shutdown.