The
House on Wednesday rejected Speaker Mike Johnson’s proposal that would have
linked temporary funding for the federal government with a mandate that states
require proof of citizenship when people register to vote.
Next
steps on government funding are uncertain. Lawmakers are not close to
completing work on the dozen annual appropriations bills that will fund federal
agencies during the next fiscal year, so they’ll need to approve a stopgap
measure to prevent a partial shutdown when that budget year begins Oct. 1.
The
vote was 220-202, with 14 Republicans and all but three Democrats opposing the
bill. Johnson, who said after the vote he was “disappointed,” will likely
pursue a Plan B to avoid a partial shutdown, though he was not yet ready to
share details.
“We’ll
draw up another play and we’ll come up with a solution,” Johnson said. “I’m
already talking to colleague about their many ideas. We have time to fix the
situation and we’ll get right to it.”
Johnson
had pulled the bill from consideration last week because it lacked the votes to
pass. He worked through the weekend to win support from fellow Republicans but
was unable to overcome objections about spending levels from some members,
while others said they don’t favor any continuing resolutions, insisting that
Congress return to passing the dozen annual appropriations bills on time and
one at a time. Democrats overwhelmingly opposed the measure.
Requiring
new voters to provide proof of citizenship has become a leading election-year
priority for Republicans raising the specter of noncitizens voting in the U.S.,
even though it’s already illegal to do so and research has shown that such
voting is rare.
Opponents
say that such a requirement would disenfranchise millions of Americans who do
not have a birth certificate or passport readily available when they get a
chance to register at their school, church or other venues when voter
registration drives occur.
But
Johnson said it is a serious problem because even if a tiny percentage of
noncitizens do vote, it could determine the outcome of an extremely close race.
He noted that Republican Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Iowa won her seat
back in 2020 by six votes.
“It’s
very, very serious stuff and that’s why we’re going to do the right thing,”
Johnson said before the vote. “We’re going to responsibly fund the government
and we’re going to stop noncitizens voting in elections.”
Meanwhile,
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump weighed in again just hours before
the vote. seemingly encouraging House Republicans to let a partial government
shutdown begin at the end of the month unless they get the proof of citizenship
mandate, referred to in the House as the SAVE Act.
“If
Republicans don’t get the SAVE Act, and every ounce of it, they should not
agree to a Continuing Resolution in any way, shape, or form,” Trump said on the
social media platform Truth Social.
House
Democrats said the proof of citizenship mandate should not be part of a bill to
keep the government funded and urged Johnson to work with them on a measure
that can pass both chambers.
“This
is not going to become law,” said Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-Calif. “This is
Republican theatrics that are meant to appease the most extreme members of
their conference, to show them that they are working on something and that
they’re continuing to support the former president of the United States in his
bid to demonize immigrants.”
Senate
Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has predicted Johnson’s effort was
doomed to fail.
“The
only thing that will accomplish is make clear that he’s running into a dead
end,” Schumer said. “We must have a bipartisan plan instead.”
The
legislation would fund agencies generally at current levels through March 28
while lawmakers work out their differences on a full-year spending agreement.
Democrats,
and some Republicans, are pushing for a shorter extension. A temporary fix
would allow the current Congress to hammer out a final bill after the election
and get it to Democratic President Joe Biden’s desk for his signature.
But
Johnson and some of the more conservative members of his conference are pushing
for a six-month extension in the hopes Trump will win and give them more
leverage when crafting the full-year bill.
Senate
Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky declined to weigh in on how long
to extend funding. He said Schumer and Johnson, ultimately, will have to work
out a final agreement that can pass both chambers.
“The
one thing you cannot have is a government shutdown. It would be politically
beyond stupid for us to do that right before the election because certainly we
would get the blame,” McConnell said.
Regardless
of the vote outcome, Republican lawmakers sought to allay any concerns there
would be a shutdown. Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., said if the bill failed, then
another stopgap bill should be voted on that would allow lawmakers to come back
to Washington after the election and finish the appropriations work.
“The
bottom line is we’re not shutting the government down,” Lawler said.
But
Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries accused Republicans of engaging in a
“shutdown effort.”
“That’s
not hyperbole,” Jeffries said. “It’s history. Because in the DNA of extreme
MAGA Republicans has consistently been an effort to make extreme ransom demands
of the American people, and if those extreme ransom demands are not met, shut
down the government.”
The
House approved a bill with the proof of citizenship mandate back in July. Some
Republicans who view the issue as popular with their constituents have been
pushing for another chance to show their support.
Rep.
Robert Aderholt, R-Ala., noted that his state’s secretary of state announced
last month that 3,251 people who had been previously issued noncitizen
identification numbers will have their voter registration status made inactive
and flagged for possible removal from the voter rolls. Voting rights groups
have since filed a lawsuit saying the policy illegally targeted naturalized
citizens for removal from voting rolls.
“These
people should never have been allowed to register in the first place and this
is exactly what the SAVE Act will prevent,” Aderholt said.