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Mike Johnson clears critical hurdle to ending government shutdown

The House took the first step on Tuesday to end the partial government shutdown, starting debate on a package of appropriations bills and a short-term funding extension for the Department of Homeland Security.

Why it matters: Congress will only have 10 days to negotiate reforms around ICE and pass a full-year DHS appropriations bill, and the two sides are far apart when it comes to reforms.


  • The vote on the "rule," which advances the bill to the House floor for debate, was 217-215.
  • Final passage of the package will happen Tuesday afternoon and it's expected to pick up significant Democratic support, Axios reported Tuesday.

State of play: GOP leadership was able to muscle through the procedural measure relying on Republican support, with a one-vote cushion.

  • President Trump extracted two "yes" votes from the two loudest GOP holdouts on Monday, who had vowed to tank the rule over the SAVE Act.
  • House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) left the vote open for 45 minutes as he flipped the remaining holdouts. Only one member, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) ultimately voted against it.
  • "What's the incentive for me to vote for anything?" Massie told Axios heading to the chamber Tuesday. Trump took to Truth Social Monday to criticize Massie's wife for making him "liberal."
  • "The speaker of the House should say something," Massie added.

What's next: House Freedom Caucus members want a seat at the negotiating table for those talks, and come with a list of conservative priorities they want included.

  • Efforts to include the SAVE Act in the next funding bill will also come up again, multiple members told Axios.
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