In New Jersey, all the political oxygen this past week has been taken up by Senator Bob Menendez’s federal indictment and the ensuing political fallout. But in Washington, the Menendez news has had to play second fiddle to another story: the looming government shutdown.
If Congress can’t pass 12 appropriations bills – which won’t happen – or a stopgap measure known as a continuing resolution (CR) by tomorrow at midnight, then the federal government will shut down for the first time since December 2018.
The Democratic-controlled Senate is currently negotiating a bipartisan CR that would fund the government through November 17; it’s set to pass on a wide margin in the near future, and would likely get support from the White House. The Republican-controlled House, on the other hand, is barreling forwards with a far more conservative CR that would likely be dead-on-arrival in the Senate (and that is unlikely to pass even in the House when it comes up today).
Much of the difficulty in negotiating a funding plan has come from members of the right-wing House Freedom Caucus, who have pushed for drastic spending cuts and eliminating aid for Ukraine – and have vociferously protested any possibility of negotiating with Democrats. With the Democratic caucus near-universally opposed to the GOP’s spending proposals, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy can only lose a few votes from the right before passing legislation becomes dicey.
None of New Jersey’s Republican representatives are among that right-wing cohort, however. Reps. Tom Kean Jr. (R-Westfield), Chris Smith (R-Manchester), and Jeff Van Drew (R-Dennis) have all largely stuck by GOP leadership on big spending votes.
On the Democratic side, probably the most important New Jerseyan is Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-Wyckoff), who co-chairs the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus (PSC). The PSC released a compromise proposal last week that would fund the government through January and make some concessions to both parties.
McCarthy, though, has stuck by his strategy of pushing bills through the Republican caucus alone, in part because House Freedom Caucus members are threatening to make moves to remove him if he begins discussions with Democrats. (One anti-McCarthy congressman, Rep. Matt Gaetz, seems to be planning to try to oust the Speaker regardless.)
In addition to its version of the CR, the House is also taking up some of the 12 longer-term appropriations bills, though all are significantly conservative bills that don’t have support from Democrats in the Senate and White House.
Last night, the House passed three appropriations bills funding the Departments of Defense, Homeland Security, and State on party-line or near-party-line votes. A fourth appropriations bill, funding the Veterans Affairs Department and military construction, passed the House in July.
A bill funding the Department of Agriculture, however, failed to pass last night. Among other things, the bill included a provision limiting access to abortion medication, which cost it the support of 27 more moderate Republicans – among them New Jersey’s Kean.
New Jersey Democrats have been united in opposing each bill, all of which make significant spending cuts and include various conservative provisions related to social issues like abortion, LGBTQ rights, and diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.
If the government does indeed shut down, the consequences would be felt across the country and in New Jersey, as Gov. Phil Murphy warned in a statement yesterday.
“A protracted government shutdown would have devastating consequences on New Jersey’s economy and on our national security,” Murphy said. “Servicemembers wouldn’t get their paychecks, travelers could face airport delays, and critical cancer research would be stalled. It is completely avoidable and extreme House Republicans need to stop playing political games with peoples’ lives and keep the government open.”
On top of shutdown woes, the House is also moving forward with its controversial impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden, and long-serving California Senator Dianne Feinstein died last night. In other words, while Menendez’s indictment is radically reshaping New Jersey politics, it’s just one thing in a large heap of dramatic happenings in Congress this week.