President Trump Backs House Short-Term Spending Bill to Avoid Government Shutdown

The Capitol is seen in Washington, early Tuesday, Dec. 5, 2017, days before a budget clash
AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite
Sean Moran

President Donald Trump backed the House leadership’s short-term spending bill to avert a government shutdown.

White House principal deputy press secretary said in a statement:

The President supports the continuing resolution introduced in the House. Congress needs to do its job and provide full funding of our troops and military with a two-year budget caps deal. However, as the deal is negotiated, the President wants to ensure our military and national security are funded. He will not let it be held hostage by Democrats.

The 45th president tweeted on Thursday that a government shutdown would devastate the military and that funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) should be part of a long-term funding bill, not a stop-gap spending bill.

President Trump tweeted, “CHIP should be part of a long-term solution, not a 30 Day, or short-term, extension!”

The president added, “A government shutdown will be devastating to our military…something the Dems care very little about!”:

House Republican leadership proposed a stop-gap spending bill that will fund the government through February 16. The measure was offered in exchange for temporarily delaying several Obamacare taxes while funding the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) for six years.

Freedom Caucus chairman Mark Meadows (R-NC) told Politico that enough no votes remain to prevent a stop-gap spending bill from passing through the House, assuming no Democrats vote for the bill. 

Meadows continued, arguing that the short-term spending bill would continue to hold the military hostage, and increase spending. Meadows added that the short-term spending bill would also allow the Senate more time to craft a watered-down Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) illegal alien amnesty to the expense of conservatives who want funding for a southern border wall, as well as an end to chain migration and the diversity visa lottery.

House conservatives hope to seize the current window to force a vote on the Goodlatte-Labrador immigration bill.

Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA), a member of the House Freedom Caucus, told reporters on Wednesday, “First of all, I’d like to get our House bill on immigration enforcement passed. That’s a minimum standard. That’s No. 1.”

Congressman Dave Brat (R-VA) argued, “We don’t wanna get rolled by the Senate on DACA and the budget.”

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