House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) is facing the first real test of his control of his GOP caucus in Donald Trump's second term as the clock is ticking toward a government shutdown.
According to a report from Politico's Eugene Daniels, it is "do-or-die" time for the top Republican in the House as members of the House Budget Committee review a budget proposal that is getting a thumbs-down from far-right members.
With NOTUS reporting Rep. Eric Burlison (R-MO) called what he has seen so far "pathetic," Politico's report notes Johnson "emerged from hours of closed-door meetings yesterday refusing to make changes to his plan, "despite hard-liner demands for deeper spending cuts and other adjustments" putting the fate of a deal in doubt.
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With such a slim GOP margin in the House, and Democrats making noise about not bailing Johnson out, the House leadership is facing a "vote-count problem," the report stated.
Budget Committee members Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) and Ralph Norman (R-SC) have already indicated they aren't on board, which means one more Republican can derail the whole process.
The report adds, "It’s likely to remain unclear well into the day whether Budget Chair Jodey Arrington (R-TX) can close the deal and send a budget resolution to the floor.”
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