House and Senate leaders agreed to extend the deadlines to reach a spending deal until March on Sunday night.
With a government shutdown looming if Democrats and Republicans don’t come to terms with each other on a spending agreement, the Senate Appropriations Committee announced an extension until March. House Republicans have been feuding with Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) for an agreement he made with Democrats last weekend that kept top-line spending levels at $1.66 trillion.
“The bipartisan topline funding agreement reached ensures that America will be able to address many of the major challenges our country faces at home and abroad,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said in a statement. “I thank leaders from both sides, and particularly members of the Appropriations Committee, for their commitment to keeping the government open and working for the American people.”
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Johnson touted the agreement as a win for Republicans, as the March 1 and March 8 deadlines keep his “laddered,” two-step approach to passing funding bills intact.
“The agreement reduces the worst gimmicks included in the previous side deals in the Fiscal Responsibility Act, and now includes $16 billion in additional real spending cuts from the Democrats’ IRS and COVID-era slush funds,” Johnson said in a statement. “Because the completion deadlines are upon us, a short continuing resolution is required to complete what House Republicans are working hard to achieve: an end to governance by omnibus, meaningful policy wins, and better stewardship of American tax dollars.”
