GOP Seeks Support for Shutdown Vote    02/03 06:09

   Speaker Mike Johnson's ability to carry out President Donald Trump's "play 
call" for funding the government will be put to the test Tuesday as the House 
holds a procedural vote on a bill to end the partial shutdown.

   WASHINGTON (AP) -- Speaker Mike Johnson's ability to carry out President 
Donald Trump's "play call" for funding the government will be put to the test 
Tuesday as the House holds a procedural vote on a bill to end the partial 
shutdown.

   Johnson will need near-unanimous support from his Republican conference to 
proceed. He can afford to lose only one Republican on party-line votes with 
perfect attendance, but some lawmakers are threatening to tank the effort if 
their priorities are not included. Trump weighed in with a social media post, 
telling them "There can be NO CHANGES at this time."

   "We will work together in good faith to address the issues that have been 
raised, but we cannot have another long, pointless, and destructive Shutdown 
that will hurt our Country so badly -- One that will not benefit Republicans or 
Democrats. I hope everyone will vote, YES!," Trump wrote on his social media 
site.

   The measure would end the partial government shutdown that began Saturday, 
funding most of the federal government through Sept. 30 and the Department of 
Homeland Security for two weeks as lawmakers negotiate potential changes for 
the agency that enforces the nation's immigration laws -- United States 
Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE.

   Running Trump's 'play call'

   Johnson said on "Fox News Sunday" it was Trump's "play call to do it this 
way. He had already conceded he wants to turn down the volume, so to speak." 
But GOP leaders sounded like they still had work to do in convincing the 
rank-and-file to join them as House lawmakers returned to the Capitol Monday 
after a week back in their congressional districts.

   "We always work till the midnight hour to get the votes," said House 
Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La. "You never start the process with 
everybody on board. You work through it, and you could say that about every 
major bill we've passed."

   The funding package passed the Senate on Friday. Trump says he'll sign it 
immediately if it passes the House. Some Democrats are expected to vote for the 
final bill, but not for the initial procedural measure setting the terms for 
the House debate, making it the tougher test for Johnson and the White House.

   Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries has made clear that Democrats wouldn't 
help Republicans out of their procedural jam, even though Senate Democratic 
leader Chuck Schumer helped negotiate the funding bill.

   Jeffries noted that the procedural vote covers a variety of issues that most 
Democrats oppose, including resolutions to hold former President Bill Clinton 
and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in contempt of Congress over the 
Jeffrey Epstein investigation.

   "If they have some massive mandate," Jeffries said of Republicans, "then go 
pass your rule, which includes toxic bills that we don't support."

   Key differences from the last shutdown

   The path to the current partial shutdown differs from the fall impasse, 
which affected more agencies and lasted a record 43 days.

   Then, the debate was over extending temporary, COVID-era subsidies for those 
who get health coverage through the Affordable Care Act. Democrats were 
unsuccessful in getting those subsidies included as part of a package to end 
the shutdown.

   Congress has made important progress since then, passing six of the 12 
annual appropriations bills that fund federal agencies and programs. That 
includes important programs such as nutrition assistance and fully operating 
national parks and historic sites. They are funded through Sept. 30.

   But the remaining unpassed bills represent roughly three-quarters of federal 
spending, including the Department of Defense. Service members and federal 
workers could miss paychecks depending upon the length of the current funding 
lapse.

   Voting bill becomes last-minute obstacle

   Some House Republicans have demanded that the funding package include 
legislation requiring voters to show proof of citizenship before they are 
eligible to participate in elections. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., had said 
the legislation, known as the SAVE Act, must be included in the appropriations 
package.

   But Luna appeared to drop her objections late Monday, writing on social 
media that she had spoken with Trump about a "pathway forward" for the voting 
bill in the Senate that would keep the government open.

   The Brennan Center for Justice, a think tank focused on democracy and voting 
rights issues, said the voting bill's passage would mean that Americans would 
need to produce a passport or birth certificate to register to vote, and that 
at least 21 million votes lack ready access to those papers.

   "If House Republicans add the SAVE Act to the bipartisan appropriations 
package it will lead to another prolonged Trump government shutdown," Schumer 
said. "Let's be clear, the SAVE Act is not about securing our elections. It is 
about suppressing voters."

   Johnson has operated with a thin majority throughout his tenure as speaker. 
But with Saturday's special election in Texas, the Republican majority stands 
at a threadbare 218-214, shrinking the GOP's ability to withstand defections.