Casts doubt

Thune casts doubt on passing government funding bills before Christmas

Lawmakers had hoped to advance more appropriations measures this month.

By Jordain Carney and Jennifer Scholtes

Senate Majority Leader John Thune acknowledged Monday that his chamber might not have time this month to pass another package of government funding bills, after trying for more than two weeks to fire up debate.

Faced with another looming shutdown threat on Jan. 30, Thune has been seeking approval from all 100 senators to bundle together a slate of spending measures for floor consideration. But objections from individual lawmakers have hindered progress on another grouping of bills to fund most federal agencies through next September.

“It would be great if, in fact, we could get the approps process going and actually have a package on the floor,” Thune told reporters Monday afternoon. “Whether we conclude it before the Christmas holiday or not — at least it would be queued up and ready to go in January.”

The Senate is scheduled to be in session for three more weeks before adjourning for a year-end recess.

“You’ve got to understand the time standpoint and the calendar, what we’ve got to get done,” Thune said. “There’s a lot of stuff we’ve got to deal with.”

Even if the Senate passes another spending package in the coming weeks, most federal agencies won’t be funded past January if Senate leaders don’t reach a compromise that can pass the House. Lawmakers reached a bipartisan, bicameral compromise last month to enact three of the dozen annual appropriations measures as part of the short-term spending bill that ended the longest shutdown in U.S. history.

Despite clearing that trio of bills, however, Congress still needs to sort out spending levels for the vast majority of the federal government, including the Pentagon, education programs and health agencies.