Congress passed the stop-gap spending measure with bipartisan support to avoid a government shutdown and sent it to President Biden for his signature before the Thanksgiving holiday.
This is the part where usually we mindlessly list how the Colorado delegation voted along party lines.
Only they didn’t this time, because the world has turned bass ackwords in more ways than one.
So get a load of these strange bedfellows: voting for the bill were Republican U.S Rep. Doug Lamborn, Democrats U.S. Reps. Diana DeGette, Joe Neguse, Jason Crow, Yadira Caraveo, and U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper.
Voting against the bill was Democrat U.S. Sen. Mike Bennet, and Republican U.S. Reps. Ken Buck (figures) and Lauren Boebert.
What the Hell, right?
Bennet explained that he wanted to shut down the government because the continuing spending resolution that only funds the government for a few months didn’t include money for the war in Ukraine.
He didn’t seem concerned that that the bill also lacked funding for Israel.
Colorado Senator @SenatorBennet was the only Democratic senator to vote against a bill keeping the federal government open. He told a DC reporter his vote was because the bill did not include funding for Ukraine. #copolitics https://t.co/k7mm8OKntP
— Brandon Richard (@BrandonLRichard) November 16, 2023
Bennet was the only Democrat in the Senate who voted against the measure.
Buck and Boebert are both members of the Freedom Caucus.
“The House Freedom Caucus opposes the proposed ‘clean’ Continuing Resolution as it contains no spending reductions, no border security, and not a single meaningful win for the American people,” the group said. “Republicans must stop negotiating against ourselves over fears of what the Senate may do with the promise ‘roll over today and we’ll fight tomorrow.’”
It’s tough to legislate within a clean continuing resolution bill that’s only good for a couple of months — or fund a war — and both sides know that. Continuing means government agencies continue operating on the same budgets without changes.
Meanwhile, for those keeping score who want to get wonky, House Republicans are sticking to the plan to pass individual appropriation measures as it’s done historically, and as the GOP-led House has promised.
The House has already passed seven of the 12 annual spending bills at far lower spending levels than in previous years and the Senate has passed three of those bills so far.
It can be done, House Speaker Johnson said, it’s just going to take time.
“We’re not surrendering,” the speaker said. “We are fighting. But you have to be wise about choosing the fights.”