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Mike Johnson
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson walks to a meeting in the Capitol. J. Scott Applewhite/AP

Republicans Prepare to Ditch the ‘Fake Fighting’ and Accept a Government Funding Bill

“I understand people don’t like to get jammed right up against Christmas, but we didn’t get the votes for that,” House Appropriations Chairman Tom Cole told reporters.

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson walks to a meeting in the Capitol. J. Scott Applewhite/AP

After Speaker Mike Johnson’s government funding gambit fell apart on Wednesday, Republicans were quickly and quietly coalescing behind a new plan: the old plan, but less.

On the Democratic side, most of the consternation over Johnson’s funding package has been over including the SAVE Act — a proposal requiring proof of citizenship to register to vote. But for some Republicans, the major problem with Johnson’s legislation was the timeframe — six months, pushing the next government funding deadline to March, when there will be a new president.

Democrats want a shorter extension, but so do many Republicans, reasoning that it’d be harmful to the military to keep the Pentagon at current levels for another half year.