A 45-day continuing resolution will fund the federal government at 2023 levels until November 15.
Asked last week about the possibility that the federal government could shut down, Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh described it as “the worst thing that could happen.”
Coming from a flack for the part of the government that is supposed to plan for what to do in the event of a nuclear war, that description seems just a little hyperbolic.
Well, there’s some good news for Singh: The federal government won’t shut down after all.
At least not until November 15.
With the scheduled shutdown just hours away, Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R–Calif.) pushed a 45-day continuing resolution through the House of Representatives on Saturday afternoon despite the opposition of 90 fellow Republicans (and one Democrat). The Senate passed the same bill in an 88-9 vote on Saturday night, and President Joe Biden has indicated he will sign it.
The continuing resolution keeps overall spending levels at 2023 levels, though it does not resolve the impasse over whether Congress will continue supplying military and humanitarian aid to Ukraine. That funding was left out of the final bill, but House Democrats released a statement Saturday saying they expected McCarthy to hold an up-or-down vote soon on a separate bill to fund the Ukrainian efforts.
In remarks to the media after the House vote, McCarthy criticized the group of Republicans who had blocked various attempts to pass spending bills.
