GOP Plan To Avoid Shutdown Defeated In House

Dozens in the party rebel against bill that Trump backed after he killed budget deal

- Lindsay Wise, Katy Stech Ferek and Siobhan Hughes

House Republicans' slimmed-down plan to try to avert a government shutdown was defeated in a hastily called vote Thursday, as several dozen GOP lawmakers joined with Democrats in rejecting the proposal endorsed by President-elect Donald Trump.

The revised legislation proposed extending government funding for three months and providing more than $100 billion in disaster relief and aid for farmers, while stripping out a series of other provisions, such as restrictions on investments in China, 9/11 healthcare funds, and new rules on pharmacy benefit managers. It also proposed suspending the nation's borrowing limit for two years.

It had 174 votes in favor and 235 against, with one member voting present, well short of the two-thirds majority required under special fast-track procedures. Crucially, it also was shy of a simple majority of the GOP-controlled chamber, dimming its chances of being brought to the floor again and marking an embarrassing setback for both Trump and embattled House Speaker Mike Johnson (R., La.).

In all 38 Republicans, mostly fiscal hard-liners, voted against the bill, along with almost all Democrats. Two DemocratsReps. Kathy Castor of Florida and Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington-voted in favor of the measure. Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D., Ohio) voted present.

If no bill is passed and signed into law by President Biden by 12:01 a.m. Saturday, the federal government would partially shut down, furloughing hundreds of thousands of federal workers. Critical services would continue to function.

The vote came a day after Trump killed a bipartisan deal backed by Johnson and other congressional leaders that had drawn widespread criticism from rank-and-file GOP lawmakers. The new legislation came in at 116 pages, down from the 1,547 pages in the original bill.

As with the initial proposal, the bill would extend government funding until March 14.