The House planned to vote Thursday on a "clean" continuing resolution that would extend federal funding through Nov. 27, a stopgap measure crafted to carry the government past the end of the fiscal month and the chamber’s upcoming recess.
House Republican leaders said they were still negotiating with holdouts and needed near-unanimous GOP support to pass the measure on their own; with a slim majority, Republicans can afford only two defections. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) said he expected to hold his caucus together in opposition and planned a Democratic meeting Thursday focused on voting no.
If the House approves the continuing resolution, Senate Republicans hope to use the fast timeline to press ahead with cloture motions and a procedural test vote that could be held Saturday. By Senate rules, a cloture filing requires an intervening day before the Senate may proceed to a 60-vote test; a Thursday House passage would allow Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) to file cloture Thursday, count Friday as the intervening day and hold a cloture vote on Saturday.
Senate GOP strategists noted the compressed calendar is partly driven by the chamber’s planned recess for Rosh Hashanah, which begins at sundown Monday, and by members’ personal schedules. Several Senate Republicans have said they want to attend a funeral in Arizona on Sunday for conservative activist Charlie Kirk, making a Saturday vote preferable. The government is funded only through 11:59:59 p.m. ET on Sept. 30, but the calendar complication means leaders are weighing whether to move quickly this week or delay until the following week.
Republicans hold 53 Senate seats but could fall to 52 if Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) opposes the interim bill, complicating efforts to reach the 60 votes needed to overcome a filibuster. Democrats have signaled they expect concessions in exchange for their support, with party officials pointing to priorities such as the renewal of Affordable Care Act premium subsidies among potential bargaining chips.
Even if the House passes a clean continuing resolution, the Senate would still face procedural hurdles. Multiple cloture motions and additional votes could be required to clear the measure, and Senate leaders acknowledged the chamber might have to remain in session through the holiday or convene on short notice to complete the work. One senior Senate GOP aide said the possibility of remaining through Rosh Hashanah had been discussed, a stance that could draw political scrutiny because of the holiday’s significance and the prominence of Jewish members of leadership.
Timing and strategy are fluid. Sources cautioned that the House vote could slip to Friday, which would push any Senate cloture vote into the weekend or into the following week and complicate attendance for members with travel plans. If the House were to approve the measure later in the day Friday, the earliest Senate procedural vote would be Sunday, under Senate rules requiring the intervening day.
Republicans have sought to cast the looming deadline as a Democratic responsibility if the continuing resolution fails, while Democrats insist they will withhold support unless negotiators secure policy or funding concessions. With about two weeks of extended funding on the table under the proposed Nov. 27 end date, lawmakers on both sides face pressure to balance short-term government operations with longer-term budget and policy fights ahead of that new deadline.
As the Sept. 30 deadline approaches, Capitol Hill leaders from both parties said they would continue talks. Lawmakers and aides warned there could be more dramatic maneuvers or last-minute compromises before the House vote, with outcomes hinging on whether conservative holdouts relent, whether Democratic demands for policy offsets gain traction, and whether senators can marshal the 60 votes necessary to proceed in a closely divided chamber.
