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A bill backed by President-elect Trump to avoid a partial government shutdown failed to pass the House of Representatives Thursday night.
Congress is inching closer to a possible partial shutdown, with the deadline looming at the end of Friday.
The bill required two-thirds of the House of Representatives to pass, but even a majority was not obtained. Two Democrats joined a majority of Republicans in voting to pass the bill, but 38 Republicans joined Trump in voting against the bill.
The difference dropped to 174-235.
The move comes after two days of chaos in Congress as lawmakers fought over the future direction of government spending, including a battle between President Trump and allies Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy. also joined.
Meanwhile, the national debt has increased to more than $36 trillion, and the national deficit is more than $1.8 trillion.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) listens as Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks during a press conference at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, Friday, April 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Wilfredo・Lee)
The bill comes as hard-line Republicans led by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy push back against an initial bipartisan agreement to extend government funding until March 14 and include a number of unrelated policy riders. As a result, negotiations were held on Thursday.
Although the new deal also includes some important policies unrelated to keeping the government open, the 116-page bill is much narrower than its 1,547-page predecessor.
Like the first bill, the new bill extends the deadline for government funding to March 14, while also ending debt limits sought by President Trump.
He proposed suspending the debt limit for two years until January 2027, keeping it in place for the duration of Trump’s term, but delaying the fight until after the 2026 midterm elections.
Elon Musk helped destroy the original bipartisan agreement. (Samuel Corum/Getty Images)
The new proposal includes about $110 billion in disaster relief for Americans affected by storms Milton and Helen, as well as measures to cover the cost of rebuilding the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, which was hit by a barge earlier this year. is also included.
The second round of measures excludes the first pay increases for members of Congress since 2009 and measures aimed at revitalizing Washington, D.C.’s RFK Stadium.
The text of the new bill has also been significantly shortened, from 1,547 pages to just 116 pages.
“Every Republican, and even Democrats, should do what’s best for our country and vote YES on this bill tonight!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
But the bill faced backlash from opponents even before the text was published.
Democrats, furious with Prime Minister Johnson for reneging on the original bipartisan agreement, chanted “a hell of a no” during a closed-door meeting Thursday night to discuss the bill.
Nearly all House Democrats who left the meeting indicated they would vote against it.
Meanwhile, members of the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus also said they would vote against the bill.
“Old bill: $110BB in deficit spending (unpaid), $0 national credit card increase. New bill: $110BB in deficit spending (unpaid), over $4 trillion in debt ceiling increases, no structural reforms to reduce Read the bill: 1.5 hours, I vote against it,” Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) wrote to X.
Elizabeth Elkind is a political reporter for FOX News Digital, where she leads coverage of the House of Representatives. Previous digital bylines can be found on the Daily Mail and CBS News.
Follow @liz_elkind on Twitter and send tips to elizabeth.elkind@fox.com.
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