The House rejected a bill Thursday to keep the government funded temporarily after Republican leaders reneged on an earlier bipartisan deal and made modifications to appease President-elect Donald Trump, billionaire Elon Musk and an internal GOP revolt.
The vote was 174-235, with one Democrat voting present, falling far short of the two-thirds majority needed to pass it under a fast-track process. Two Democrats voted for the bill, and Rep. Marcy Kaptur, D-Ohio, was the lone present vote, while the rest of the party opposed it. Thirty-eight Republicans voted against the bill, as well, with conservatives saying it did not substantially reduce federal spending.
The rejected measure leaves Congress without a clear plan to avoid alooming government shutdown with less than 30 hours left before the deadline, driving up the odds of a funding lapse just ahead of the holidays. A shutdown is scheduled to begin at 12:01 a.m. ET Saturday.
