House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) could have yet another whip-count headache on his hands as at least one House Republican appears unwilling to back leadership's latest round of "minibus" funding rule changes to keep various federal agencies open.
This comes as House leaders "have set up a vote that allows people to vote against the Commerce-Justice-Science portion of the spending bill," according to Punchbowl News' Jake Sherman.
However, Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) has told Punchbowl reporter Ally Mutnick that he is tilting against approval of the rule. “There’s plenty of us that are upset about what’s in it,” he said.
For much of this term, House Republicans, who are already facing a constant background level of discontent from much of the rank and file, could only afford to lose three votes due to their razor-thin majority. But now, the margins are even slimmer due to a handful of vacancies that have opened up.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) formally resigned from her seat earlier this week, after months of growing resentment between herself and President Donald Trump on a number of issues. Then, Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-CA) abruptly passed away as a result of a medical emergency, and Rep. Jim Baird (R-IN) ended up in the hospital following a car crash, although he is expected to recover.
The "minibus" packages are an attempt by House GOP leadership to safeguard the workings of various parts of the federal government from a potential federal government shutdown, after a weekslong standoff last year that paralyzed a number of critical agencies as Democrats and Republicans bickered over the continuation of extended Affordable Care Act subsidies. That matter remains unresolved, but negotiations are ongoing.