Throughout the shutdown, a key piece of Speaker Mike Johnson’s strategy has been to keep the House out of session, hoping that his chamber’s absence will force Senate Democrats to accept the GOP’s funding bill. But as the standoff stretches into its second week, some House Republicans are questioning the wisdom of keeping lawmakers out of Washington.
During a private conference call with House Republicans on Thursday, at least three GOP lawmakers — Reps. Stephanie Bice of Oklahoma, Jay Obernolte of California and Julie Fedorchak of North Dakota — raised concerns about the House remaining out of session next week, according to a source on the call.
“I think we’re gonna get to a point where it’s damaging to continue to keep the House out of session,” Obernolte told his fellow Republicans. “I think we’ve gotten to that point.”
The California Republican said keeping lawmakers home would make it look like House Republicans are “prioritizing politics over government,” according to the source.
Bice said she has “concerns” about the House lawmakers staying in their districts, adding that she thinks constituents “wonder why we’re not there,” according to the source on the call. She encouraged leadership to consider the optics for next week, noting that members could just as easily message about the shutdown from Washington.
Fedorchak echoed that sentiment, arguing that the GOP’s messaging would be stronger and more consistent from the Capitol.
The trio is not alone. In an interview with CNN this week, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., said Johnson should bring the House back into session. And Rep. Kevin Kiley, R-Calif., said in a statement to MSNBC earlier this week that he was “calling on the speaker to bring the House back in session.”
Johnson, for his part, has not shown any interest in modifying his strategy.
For days, the speaker has defended his decision to keep members out of Washington, arguing that the House has done its job by sending a short-term spending bill to the Senate for consideration — a measure that most Democrats have deemed a nonstarter. Johnson continues to say the only path forward is the House-passed bill, trying to place the onus of the shutdown on Senate Democrats.
“The House did its job,” Johnson said Thursday.
Meanwhile, the House has not voted since Sept. 19.
The private call on Thursday featured some spirited discussion about varying Republican reactions to the shutdown. Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., appeared to call out Greene for her recent comments about the shutdown — where Greene noted that Republicans control the House, Senate and White House, and called on Republicans to address the expiring Obamacare subsidies.
Malliotakis said the holdup is “obvious”: seven Democrats won’t support the GOP continuing resolution.
At another point, Rep. Claudia Tenney, R-N.Y., told a story about being at a gas station and someone saying to her “tell Marge stop supporting Chuck Schumer,” according to the source.
If we acquiesce to the Democratic extortion right now, it is only going to be worse next time.”
Speaker Mike Johnson
After a dramatic Wednesday on Capitol Hill — which featured two explosive confrontations between Democrats and Republicans in the hallways — Johnson said Congress is “probably” better served with his members at home.
“Is it better for them, probably, being physically separated right now? Yeah, probably is,” Johnson told reporters. “Frankly, I wish that weren’t the case. But we do have to turn the volume down.” Democrats, meanwhile, are using the absent GOP members as fodder for attack, with the prospect of military service members missing a paycheck on Oct. 15 becoming a flashpoint for discussion. Troops will go without pay if Congress does not pass funding for paychecks by Oct. 13. As a result, a growing number of lawmakers in both parties are urging leaders to pass a standalone bill to pay the troops during the shutdown. “What House Republicans need to do is come back so we can address the military pay issue and reopen the government,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., said Thursday. “I mean, this is an extraordinary thing. It’s unbelievable. Members of the House Republican conference are upset and perplexed that their leadership has them on vacation week after week after week.” House GOP leaders have maintained that Republicans in the chamber already voted to pay the troops by passing their stopgap bill last month. When asked by MSNBC about a potential vote on a standalone bill to pay members of the military, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., noted that the bill House Republicans already passed would pay the military. “I voted for it, Republicans did, 99% of Democrats voted not to pay our troops,” Scalise said. Pressed on whether the House would return to Washington next week, Scalise said, “Right now we’re calling on the Senate to open the government back up.” As the debate over the House GOP strategy heats up, Congress is no closer to turning the lights back on in Washington. The Senate failed to advance a pair of spending bills — one crafted by Republicans, the other written by Democrats — for the seventh time on Thursday. And neither side seems ready to blink. “If we acquiesce to the Democratic extortion right now, it is only going to be worse next time,” Johnson told his members on Thursday’s call, according to a source. At another point, Rep. Claudia Tenney, R-N.Y., told a story about being at a gas station and someone saying to her “tell Marge stop supporting Chuck Schumer,” according to the source.
Mychael Schnell is a reporter for MS NOW. Recommended
