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McCarthy’s Plan to Avoid a Shutdown Hits Stiff G.O.P. Opposition [1]

['Carl Hulse', 'More About Carl Hulse']

Date: 2023-09-18

Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s bid to gain the upper hand in a battle over federal spending hit stiff opposition from within his own ranks on Monday, leaving him with dwindling options and little time to find his way out of a funding impasse that could lead to a government shutdown in less than two weeks.

Roughly a dozen Republicans made it clear that they were staunchly opposed to the proposal unveiled on Sunday, which combines a stopgap spending measure with steep funding cuts and new border controls, indicating they could not be induced to change their votes through leadership pressure. The measure had little chance of passing the Democratic-controlled Senate, but Mr. McCarthy, who has made it clear he is desperate to avoid a politically damaging shutdown, has promoted it as a way to pressure the other chamber to come his way on spending.

Yet the internal resistance made it clear he is well short of the votes to pass it.

“The Republican House is failing the American people again and pursuing a path of gamesmanship and circus,” Representative Victoria Spartz, Republican of Indiana, said in a statement. “Neither Republicans nor Democrats have the backbone to challenge the corrupt swamp that is bankrupting our children and grandchildren. It is a shame that our weak speaker cannot even commit to having a commission to discuss our looming fiscal catastrophe.”

“This town is addicted to spending other people’s money,” Representative Eli Crane, Republican of Arizona, said on X, formerly Twitter. “Enough is enough.”

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[1] Url: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/18/us/politics/mccarthy-shutdown-spending.html

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