McConnell: We Ain't Shutting Down The Government!

Republicans in the Senate will not shut down the government.

The outgoing Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has shut down concerns the Republican members of the House will shut the government down. If they don't get their way, we could have a government shutdown in an election year.

McConnell warned that his party would be held responsible in the event that the government shuts down, suggesting Republicans could draw backlash from voters in November.

“My only observation about this whole discussion is the one thing you cannot have is a government shutdown,” he said. “It would be politically beyond stupid for us to do that right before the election, because certainly we’d get the blame.”

“I’m for whatever avoids a government shutdown and that’ll ultimately end up obviously being a discussion between the [Senate] Democratic leader and the speaker of the House,” McConnell continued.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) urged Johnson to drop his plan for a vote on the two measures this week, despite the Louisiana Republican’s claims that he is not prepared to discuss any alternatives to keep the government open past Sept. 30, when the fiscal year ends.

Republicans are trying to insert riders into a normal fiscal budget bill.

They want funding for the border, and voter restrictions added to the bill.

President Joe Biden and the Democratic controlled Senate will not support it.

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) originally tried to hold a vote on the six-month continuing resolution paired with the SAVE Act, which includes a provision requiring people to present proof of citizenship to register to vote, last week but was forced to postpone it due to bipartisan opposition.

Biden and Harris are warning Johnson that a government shutdown will affect Americans.

Given Republicans’ slim majority in the House, Johnson could only afford to lose a handful of GOP votes without having to rely on Democrats for the package’s passage. At least one Democrat, Rep. Jared Golden (D-ME) has so far signaled he would support it. 

Many hard-line Republicans have opposed the funding bill on the grounds that it doesn’t go far enough in terms of federal spending cuts.

They are willing to give Israel billions and constantly demand austerity for the working class and lower class. 

In July 2024, the United States House of Representatives passed the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, H.R. 8281, which would mandate that Americans show proof of citizenship when registering to vote. The documents required to get registered to vote would have to meet the guidelines as the documents needed to get a Real ID, but also indicate US citizenship. Usually, a driver license does not indicate citizenship, with notable exceptions in some states near the Canadian border. The Act would not take steps to allow for social security numbers to be used, and could create issues if the birth certificate or other document does not match the name due to marriage or divorce. The bill also threatens election workers with jail time if they register a noncitizen.

According to The Guardian, "The bill could lead to people who are able to vote, such as naturalized citizens, college students and tribal voters, being removed from voter rolls." Sean Morales-Doyle of the Brennan Center for Justice argued the bill is designed to call into question the legitimacy of the 2024 election so that it would be easier to overturn if  former president Donald J. Trump lost. Philip Bump argued the proposal is based on falsehoods about voter fraud and immigrants, and provides justification for partisan voter suppression. 

Biden has promised to veto it. The League of Women Voters also opposes the bill. It is considered unlikely to become law due to Democratic opposition.