WASHINGTON — After billionaire Elon Musk and President-elect Donald Trump mobilized conservatives to sabotage their bipartisan financing agreement, House Speaker Mike Johnson and Republican leaders are having difficulty Thursday coming up with a backup plan to keep the government running.
They have no strategy, or even a sense of a plan, for what comes next, with less than 36 hours to go before a deadline that would shut down large portions of the federal government and furlough workers.
Even though they need Democratic backing to enact a measure, they are not engaging in negotiations with them. They are conversing with one other.
As he entered the speaker’s office, Johnson’s supporter, Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-S.D., told reporters, “We don’t know anything yet.”
The chair of the Appropriations Committee, which manages federal financing, Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., stated that he is unsure if a reduced bill will maintain current funding and increase disaster relief funding, which might be the easiest route to take.
Cole stated, “I don’t have any expectations.”
As they try to figure out a way to meet Trump’s demands and garner enough support to pass the divided Congress and be signed into law by Democratic President Joe Biden, House Republican leaders have left their rank-and-file members and senators from both parties in a state of confusion.
Senate GOP leaders are awaiting what the House leadership can approve in their chamber, according to Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., the incoming majority whip, who spoke to NBC News.
Barrasso stated, “I haven’t heard from them.”
Democratic leaders, however, chastised Johnson and his group for breaking a bipartisan agreement he had approved.
According to some, it makes the Republican leadership in the House less credible in any upcoming talks. “There is a huge trust issue,” said Rep. Robert Garcia, a Democrat from California.
When Trump criticized the bipartisan funding agreement Johnson had secured on Wednesday night, he unpredictably threw a wrench in the funding talks. And months before a deadline to avoid an economically disastrous default next year, he made a last-minute demand with less than two days left before a shutdown deadline: he threatened to take action against Republicans unless they included a clause to increase the debt ceiling.
Trump went one step farther on Thursday morning, telling NBC News that Congress must completely eliminate the debt ceiling. Trump stated in a phone conversation that he would spearhead the push by Democrats to lift the debt ceiling, which they have been wanting to do for years.
Connecticut Rep. Rosa DeLauro, the former Appropriations Committee chair who is now the panel s top Democrat, slammed Johnson and Republicans for reneging on the bipartisan funding deal that had been locked in just days earlier.
She stated that, with President Musk’s exception, a good arrangement was in place and things were proceeding.
DeLauro responded, “It seems to me that the tech billionaire is making decisions for Republicans.”
Trump claimed to be in agreement with the president-elect on the matter and told NBC News on Thursday that Musk had only released a slew of remarks aimed at destroying the bipartisan agreement after speaking with him about it.
After meeting privately with House Democrats, Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., said his party continues to back the bipartisan deal reached with Johnson and the GOP to keep the government open through March 14.
But when asked by NBC News if Democrats could support a slimmed-down package that funds the government and only includes a farm bill and disaster aid, Jeffries twice refused to shut the door on that possibility.
At his leadership news conference, Jeffries stated, “We are ready to proceed with the bipartisan agreement that we believe was negotiated in good faith with House Republicans along with Senate Democrats and Senate Republicans that meets the needs of the American people at this moment in time.”
Instead of fighting for millionaires and billionaires, we are fighting for regular Americans. We are standing up for common Americans who will suffer as a result of a careless Republican shutdown.
Jeffries added that any debate over extending or eliminating the debt ceiling right now is premature at best.
And in a revealing sign, Jeffries said he doesn t know who s in charge among Republicans to negotiate a deal, calling it a great question.
I don t have the answers right now, he said.
Garcia said many Democrats are uninterested in giving into Trump s debt ceiling demands considering what he s planning to do.
Donald Trump wants to get rid of the debt ceiling because he wants to essentially pass huge tax cuts to enrich his friends, to enrich Elon Musk and his companies, and redistribute hard-working wealth that middle-class Americans have earned, the congressman said. And so we can have a discussion about the debt ceiling separately.
Rep. Troy Nehls, R-Texas, said he sympathizes with Johnson, contending that even the Lord Jesus would have a very difficult time managing this conference.
Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., who just won re-election in a swing district, said on MSNBC that it is very clear, Donald Trump is in charge and that Republicans need Democratic support for a bill.
The reality here is very simple. We have to negotiate, Lawler told host Andrea Mitchell. I will remind everybody we are in a divided government. Still, Democrats control the Senate and the White House, so there s going to have to be a bipartisan negotiation.
Left unsaid, as Musk calls for shutting down the government until Jan. 20 when Trump is inaugurated as president and Republicans will control Congress is that the GOP would still need Democratic support to reopen it.
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