Democrats are fuming after Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., on Friday notified the House clerk that he has canceled votes planned for next week.
"They decided to shut the government down,” Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., told reporters Friday. “Republicans in the House have decided to remain on vacation. Republicans canceled votes last week. They canceled votes this week, and now they’ve canceled votes for next week. They're not serious."
Johnson remains firm in his commitment to bring lawmakers back only after the Senate passes a House-backed stopgap spending bill to end the partial shutdown. But most Senate Democrats have blocked the chamber from reaching the 60-vote threshold needed to pass the measure.
Military service members are set to miss their first paychecks on Wednesday. Johnson said earlier this week there would be no stand-alone vote on paying the military, insisting the House has done its work by passing the stopgap bill on Sept. 19.
Rep. Sarah Elfreth, D-Md., tried unsuccessfully during a brief pro forma session Friday to advance a Democrat-backed bill to ensure military pay during the shutdown. She sought unanimous consent to pass it, but Rep. Mike Bost, R-Ill., gaveled the House out of session.
“I actually was just on the House floor demanding to force the passage of a resolution that would pay our troops,” Elfreth said in a video posted on X.
“All of our federal employees are critical, our troops, our military and our families are essential. And unfortunately, that attempt was blocked,” she said. “I was gaveled down, but House Democrats will continue to show up, continue to force these conversations, continue to come — or at least attempt to come — to the negotiating table to make sure we pass a bipartisan budget that protects our federal employees, including our troops, but doesn’t put the healthcare of 20 million and more Americans at risk.”
Rep. Sarah McBride, D-Del., wrote a letter Friday to Johnson urging him to immediately reconvene the House.
“I demand that you call House Republicans back to Washington to pass legislation to pay our troops, do the work of the American people, and reopen the government,” McBride wrote. “House Republicans have been missing in action for 21 days now, while the American people expect us to do our jobs and negotiate a deal to deliver results. Democrats are here and ready. Let’s get back to work.”
Jeffries, on a virtual caucus call, reportedly told members to return to Capitol Hill next week after allowing them to stay in their districts this past week. House Democrats are scheduled to hold an in-person caucus meeting at the Capitol on Tuesday night, followed by events on Capitol Hill the next day.
The shutdown entered its 10th day Friday, with no signs of Republicans willing to negotiate the stopgap spending bill. Democrat Sens. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania and Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada, and Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, who caucuses with Democrats, have repeatedly voted alongside Republicans to advance the measure.
Although Senate Democrats seek to renegotiate the funding measure to address concerns about Affordable Care Act subsidies set to expire at year’s end, any changes to the Senate version would have to be passed again by the House.
The Senate also held a pro forma session Friday and adjourned without voting on the stopgap spending bill. Its next session is set for Tuesday.
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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