Government Shutdown Looms

Punchbowl News: “This impasse over government funding is all about House Republicans. Johnson is under pressure from House GOP hardliners who want to string out this fight as long as possible in order to trigger automatic spending cuts. So Johnson is holding out on a number of policy riders.”

“All the other players in these bicameral discussions — Senate Democrats and Republicans, House Democrats and the White House — have pushed for bipartisan deals. But House Republicans won’t go along once again.”

“Johnson, quite frankly, has been hesitant to lead on any issue at all. With the example of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s ouster in mind, Johnson won’t overrule the Freedom Caucus.”

“As we’ll get into in a moment, the disagreements, while moderately significant from a policy perspective, don’t feel like they could lead to a shutdown. But hardline conservatives don’t operate under the typical incentive structures that govern national politics.”