Annual Government Shutdown Megathread (Cycle ends with Momentary Shutdown)

[Attorney General & PPT Dwarven Dragon]

[[SHUTDOWN CAUSED BY THE SENATE. SEE PAGE SIX.]]

Yep, it's time to shut down the Government again! And it's actually happening this time.

The appropriations process this year has been a royal mess.

The House

The House never passed a formal budget bill from the Committee on the Budget, which is where the process is supposed to begin. Instead, this document was worked out as part of the Fiscal Responsibility Act to raise the Debt Ceiling. That should have been the effective end of the discussion on topline spending levels and fueled an orderly drafting of appropriations bills to a total level of $1.59 Trillion for FY2024, exactly as stated in that Act.

But instead, Speaker Kevin McCarthy and Appropriations Committee Chair Kay Granger, under pressure from the Freedom Caucus, announced they would draft appropriations bills substantially below those limits, with a goal of around $1.5 Trillion, perhaps even lower. Also planned were a slew of new riders, on topics ranging from Critical Race Theory to LGBTQ issues to Climate Change. The appropriations committee proceeded to pass 10 of the 12 bills along partisan lines, leaving the Labor-HHS and CJS Bills stuck in committee. The Budget Committee also still passed a formal house budget framework that would balance in 10 years, this document has not seen the house floor so far.

While the process in the appropriations committee was fairly smooth, McCarthy spent until Late July doing nothing. Then shortly before the August Recess, he declared that the House would vote on 2 of the 12 appropriations bills: Veterans Affairs and Agriculture. Veterans Affairs, always the easiest bill because everyone loves vets and no one really insisted on spending cuts there, passed the House without issue. Agriculture was supposed to be easy too, after all, what Republican doesn't love cutting Food Stamps? Well, it all got ruined when some Republicans insisted on using the bill as a platform to ban the abortion pill nationwide. A whole slew of moderates threatened to vote No, the bill was pulled, and everyone was promptly sent home for August Recess.

The House returned September 11 with only a few short weeks to fund the Government before the annual September 30 deadline to avoid a government shutdown. As usual, there appeared to be a need for a Continuing Resolution to keep the lights on temporarily. But the Freedom Caucus said any CR would have to include their preferred immigration policy - or at least that appeared to be their position until a few broke off from the rest of the ranks and said they would oppose any CR, instead preferring to shut down until regular funding is passed. McCarthy briefly brought a possible CR before the rules committee before quickly pulling it from consideration.

So, the House resumed consideration of Regular Appropriations Bills. After several failed rule votes, a rule for the Homeland Security bill, the State-Foreign Operations Bill, the Defense Bill, and the Agriculture Bill passed. The House passed on Thursday 9/28 three of the four bills, with the agriculture bill failing due to the abortion provision. Ukraine funding was removed from the defense bill and passed separately.

Two more bills are set to be teed up by the Rules Committee soon, those funding Interior and Energy and Water. But currently there is still no CR on the docket (though this could change at any moment) and the House seems to be accepting a shutdown will happen.

The Senate

Appropriations Committee Chair Patty Murray and Ranking Member Susan Collins pledged that they would be different than their predecessors and their house counterparts. Collins agreed to not pursue the slew of new riders favored by the House, Murray pledged to not pursue repeal of longstanding abortion riders opposed by many in her party. Both agreed to the Fiscal Responsibility Act spending levels. And for weeks, it worked perfectly. All 12 appropriations bills passed out of committee with strong bipartisan support, many of them unanimously. The Senate went on August Recess ready to expeditiously pass its bills across the floor in September.

Upon its return on September 5, the Senate decided to procrastinate with some nominations for a week but then got to work. The Senate floor process began with plans to pass a Minibus of Veterans Affairs, Agriculture, and Transportation funding. The initial procedural votes were easy, but then enter Senator Ron Johnson. He objected to bundling the bills together, demanding standalone consideration of each. Schumer, citing time constraints and a lack of House vehicles to use to comply with constitutional requirements, refused and attempted to suspend the rules to override him, which failed to achieve the required 2/3 majority. The minibus was ultimately pulled from the floor.

The Senate has spent this week advancing a possible CR with disaster relief and supplemental Ukraine funding, using the House passed FAA reauthorization bill (which also must be reauthorized at least temporarily by Sept. 30) as their vehicle. The CR is currently expected to pass sometime over the weekend, but even if the House acquiesces quickly a short shutdown is expected due to time constraints.


Watch the action hour by hour on this thread until the Government is funded!

What services are affected by a shutdown? While many services are essential and continue (albeit with their employees working without pay until they are backpaid after the shutdown is over), others are delayed or halted entirely. Unlike in 2018 where only select agencies were affected due to 5 of the 12 appropriations bills having been signed into law, this will be  a complete shutdown affecting agencies funded by any of the 12 appropriations bills. Here's some good summaries of what is affected.

https://www.cnbc.com/2023/09/27/government-shutdown-looms-personal-finance-impact.html
http://dankildee.house.gov/governmentshutdown
https://time.com/6316879/how-government-shutdown-affects-americans/
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2023/09/26/government-shutdown-agencies-services-affected/ (paywalled)

[emailking]

The Republicans have determined the Impeachment Inquiry staff are essential workers so their work will continue through the possible shutdown.

[Bandit3 the Worker]

If the Biden regime closes national parks, I will vote Republican until the end of time.

[SnowLabrador]

No other country lets this happen. We are a laughing stock...well, more so.

[GeorgiaModerate]

If the Biden regime closes national parks, I will vote Republican until the end of time.

Blaming the wrong party, there.

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

As I said we spent 12 T on Wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and Ukraine the 33 T dollar Debt isn't all about entitlement, if we haven't spent 4 T on Ukraine we will, but that's how much you budget based on past wars

Jerry Jones, Trump, Cheney, and Trump are oil men anyways and the rich needs to pay more in taxes, but Grover Norquist thinks that it destroys jobs, not if you keep Capita Gains tax cuts and raise inheritance taxes too


Clinton and Obama kept Capital gains but raised the inheritance taxes, most rich blk celebrities like Bill Bellamy support Reparations they are worth 33 M like George Floyd based on Endorsements, too because they are guided by Oprah

That's what this Eday is about and Reagan gave reparations Per Capita to Native American

[Libertas Vel Mors]

No other country lets this happen. We are a laughing stock...well, more so.

We should shut down the government more, actually. Our Congressmen need to do more to break the spending cartel that is robbing us.

[certified hummus supporter 🇵🇸🤝🇺🇸🤝🇺🇦]

No other country lets this happen. We are a laughing stock...well, more so.

We should shut down the government more, actually. Our Congressmen need to do more to break the spending cartel that is robbing us.

I, too, remember how cool it was to be an edgy 14 year old

[Ferguson97]

No other country lets this happen. We are a laughing stock...well, more so.

We should shut down the government more, actually. Our Congressmen need to do more to break the spending cartel that is robbing us.

I really hope you’re like 15, otherwise this is just embarrassing.

[Attorney General & PPT Dwarven Dragon]

No other country lets this happen. We are a laughing stock...well, more so.

We should shut down the government more, actually. Our Congressmen need to do more to break the spending cartel that is robbing us.

In the long term, having had a government shutdown actually adds to the deficit

[GeorgiaModerate]

https://twitter.com/MacFarlaneNews/status/1707814481466720664

Shutdown incoming.

[Attorney General & PPT Dwarven Dragon]

GOP Preferred CR fails 198-232

[GP270watch]

 Do blue avatars support these shutdowns? We know they keep voting in these GOP clowns but then complain about Washington D.C. not working together, why the huge disconnect?

[Oryxslayer]

GOP Preferred CR fails 198-232

https://twitter.com/JakeSherman/status/1707816107623493985?t=pyr0S1AuHbIeeabuDdE...

So there will probably be a shutdown unless the senate deal is passed - either over McCarthys head or as his last act as leader.

[P. Clodius Pulcher did nothing wrong]

Don't members of the House have 1 opportunity per session to force a vote on the House floor without leadership approval? Or did I remember this rule wrong.

[Lief 🗽]

Kevin trying to brag about doing 70% of his job lol
https://twitter.com/whitehouse/status/1707829345845153867?s=46&t=o2RmfeV6yYJ...

[T'Chenka]

Do blue avatars support these shutdowns? We know they keep voting in these GOP clowns but then complain about Washington D.C. not working together, why the huge disconnect?

"Keeping the government open is important, yes, but owning the libs is a top priority."

[Attorney General & PPT Dwarven Dragon]

Don't members of the House have 1 opportunity per session to force a vote on the House floor without leadership approval? Or did I remember this rule wrong.

That was an idea that was floated when Pelosi was working to win enough votes for Speaker in 2019 but it was never actually enacted.

[Attorney General & PPT Dwarven Dragon]

03:32:57 PM      The Speaker announced that the House do now recess. The next meeting is subject to the call of the Chair.

[GALeftist]

One wonders what it will take for supposedly reasonable conservatives. The two party system in this country doesn’t even really include a conservative option; your choice is between the left-liberal party and the party that has been rendered essentially insolvent by its slide to fascism. Like, what conservative priorities are these clowns accomplishing? At a certain point you just have to come to terms with the fact that anyone who considers voting Republican at the federal level for any reason is less fellow American with civil disagreements and more hostage-taker; their hatred for anything remotely left of center is so great that they would rather essentially blow up the federal government than see their fellow left of center Americans any closer to power.

[ProudModerate2]

That loss was not even close.
It was a huge No vote.
House GOP is a clown car, and I'm loving all their infighting.

[Hermit For Peace]

Would there ever be a shutdown if the pay of Congress was suspended until all parties came to an agreement on funding?

Better yet, just fix the damn structure so that this can never happen again. And suspend the pay of the people charged with keeping the govt open until they come up with a final solution.

Jesus, this should never happen. The peons are getting the shaft once again.

[Ferguson97]

Would there ever be a shutdown if the pay of Congress was suspended until all parties came to an agreement on funding?

Wouldn't this just empower independently wealthy members of Congress to hold their less wealthy, less experienced colleagues hostage?

[emailking]

They could only enact something like that for future sessions of Congress. But since many current members will be in those sessions it seems unlikely they would pass that. It couldn't be imposed without Congress agreeing to it.

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

Hopefully this is the last shutdown and Ds changes the rules when they take the Congress

As I said earlier rich people get their money from oil and we are running deficits due to Iran and Afghanistan past wars 8T and Ukraine War.

Jerry Jones is not a D, he is a Trump supporter, BIG OIL