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Three of Congress\u2019s top four leaders had a loud and unified message for Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) when they met with him at the White House on Tuesday: Ignore the pressure from conservative critics and avoid a government shutdown on Friday.<\/p>\n
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer<\/a><\/span><\/span> (D-N.Y.), Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell<\/a><\/span><\/span> (R-Ky.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) emerged from the meeting, which participants described as \u201cintense\u201d and \u201cpassionate,\u201d feeling somewhat reassured that Johnson heard their pleas.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was a productive and intense meeting,\u201d Schumer said outside the White House. \u201cWe made it so clear that we can\u2019t have the shutdown because it hurts so many people in so many different ways.\u201d<\/p>\n Schumer said \u201cthe Speaker did not reject\u201d the warning and \u201csaid he wants to avoid a government shutdown.\u201d<\/p>\n Jeffries said after the meeting that the atmosphere was \u201cintense\u201d as leaders in the room, which included President Biden and Vice President Harris, emphasized \u201cthe need to avoid a government shutdown and to fund the government so we can address the needs of the American public.\u201d<\/p>\n He said negotiators are making \u201creal progress\u201d on the appropriations bills for federal departments and agencies that will see their funding lapse after March 1 without congressional action. Those bills include funding for military construction and the departments of Veterans Affairs, Agriculture, Energy, Transportation and Housing and Urban Development.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m cautiously optimistic that we can do what is necessary in the next day or so to close down these bills and avoid a government shutdown,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n But he also warned that Congress may have to pass another stopgap spending measure to give negotiators more time to reach a deal to fund the departments of Defense, Homeland Security, Health and Human Services and other agencies that will see their funding lapse after a second March 8 deadline.<\/p>\n A Republican senator who requested anonymity to discuss internal strategy for avoiding a government shutdown said the objective of the White House meeting was to pile pressure on Johnson.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you can demonstrate it\u2019s kind of three against one, you can kind of pressure or influence someone, and I hope that\u2019s what he senses,\u201d the senator said.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is a bipartisan effort to ensure that we\u2019re doing the right thing and keeping the government open, and it\u2019s okay for him to have a bipartisan vote\u201d to pass funding legislation to avoid a shutdown, the senator added.<\/p>\n The other leaders in the room also presented a unified front to Johnson on the need to pass a Senate-approved foreign aid package that includes $60 billion for Ukraine.<\/p>\n McConnell was the first person in the meeting to lay out the reasons to Johnson for not waiting longer to pass military aid for Ukraine, which faces losing ground to Russia because of dwindling supplies.<\/p>\n Speaking to reporters afterward, McConnell said he hoped Johnson would bring the foreign aid package up for a vote.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat I hope is that the House would take up the Senate bill and let the House work its way,\u201d he said. \u201cIf they change it and send it back here, we have further delay. Not only do we not want to shut the government down, we don\u2019t want the Russians to win in Ukraine.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd so we have a time problem here. And the best way to move quickly and to get the bill to the president would be for the House to take up the Senate bill and pass it,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n The Republican senator conceded that Johnson could face a motion to vacate the Speaker\u2019s chair if he angers House conservatives but warned there\u2019s no chance he can pass legislation to keep the government funded without Democratic votes.<\/p>\n A Senate Republican aide warned a government shutdown would be \u201cdumb on policy and political grounds\u201d and acknowledged that GOP senators aren\u2019t sure how Johnson will react to pressure from House conservatives who are pushing to add policy riders that are a non-starter with Democrats, who control the Senate and White House.<\/p>\n The aide compared Johnson to a pendulum swinging from one position to another on how to handle the government funding bills.<\/p>\n Johnson told reporters after the White House meeting that he is \u201cvery optimistic\u201d about avoiding a shutdown.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have been working in good faith around the clock every single day for months and weeks, and over the last several days, quite literally around the clock to get that job done. We\u2019re very optimistic,\u201d he said. \u201cWe believe that we can get to agreement on these issues and prevent a government shutdown, that\u2019s our first responsibility.\u201d<\/p>\n While Johnson told fellow congressional leaders at the White House that he wants to avoid a shutdown and has passed two previous stopgap funding bills with help from Democrats, he has yet to show he\u2019s willing to get into a battle with members of the House Freedom Caucus that could wind up costing him his leadership job.<\/p>\n Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Patty Murray (D-Wash.) said on the Senate floor Tuesday that the policy riders Freedom Caucus conservatives are trying to add to the spending bills are threatening to derail the legislation before the March 1 and March 8 deadlines.<\/p>\n \u201cThe biggest obstacle right now has been Republican poison pills that were never truly on the table. They were always going to be non-starters,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cBut we have made really good progress on the first few bills, and we can get them done if extreme demands are pushed aside. We cannot let a few far-right extremists derail the basic functioning of government,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n Senate Democrats and Republicans \u2014 as well as House Democrats \u2014 have become increasingly concerned about Johnson\u2019s ability to avoid a shutdown in light of how much difficulty he\u2019s faced passing legislation this and last year.<\/p>\n The low point for the Speaker came earlier this month when he miscalculated the vote count for two articles of impeachment against Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro\u00a0Mayorkas, which initially failed by a vote of 214 to 216 after three Republicans opposed the measure.<\/p>\n Then right after that failure, Johnson couldn\u2019t get the votes to pass an $18 billion Israel aid bill, which he tried to advance with a maneuver that allowed him to get around opposition to the bill in his own conference but required two-thirds support.<\/p>\n The Speaker was also forced to pull several bills off the House floor last year when it became clear he couldn\u2019t muster enough votes in the GOP conference to overcome a procedural hurdle.<\/p>\n McConnell warned House Republicans this week that a government shutdown would only hurt their party politically.<\/p>\n \u201cShutting down the government is harmful to the country. And it never produces positive outcomes \u2014 on policy or politics,\u201d he declared on the Senate floor Monday.<\/p>\n He argued that \u201ca shutdown this week is entirely avoidable.\u201d<\/p>\n After meeting with Johnson at the White House, McConnell expressed cautious optimism a shutdown would be avoided this week.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s pretty safe to say we all agree we need to avoid a government shutdown. The Speaker was optimistic that they\u2019ll be able to move forward first with the four bills,\u201d McConnell said.<\/p>\n \u201cUnder no circumstance does anybody want to shut the government down, so I think we can stop that drama right here before it emerges. We\u2019re simply not going to do that,\u201d he insisted. <\/p>\n For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. <\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n