On September 19th, the U.S. House of Representatives narrowly passed a short-term continuing resolution (CR) 217-212 to fund the government through November 21, keeping spending at current levels.
The bill then moved to the Senate, where on September 21st it failed by a 44-48 vote—falling short of the 60 votes needed to overcome a filibuster. Only one Democrat, Senator John Fetterman, joined Republicans in supporting it; two Republicans—Lisa Murkowski and Rand Paul—voted against.
Democrats in the Senate also offered a competing CR that included extensions for health care subsidies and Medicaid protections, but it too failed in party-line fashion.
Prospects going forward: With the Senate rejecting both the House CR and the Democratic alternative, the risk of a government shutdown increases as the current funding expires on September 30. Negotiations are expected to continue, and there may be another vote right before the deadline in hopes of getting enough Democratic votes or concessions to break the impasse.
