McCarthy, Gaetz spar behind closed doors as shutdown looms

McCarthy and Gaetz have long had a tense relationship

Tensions flared as House Republicans met behind closed doors on Thursday, the latest sign of deep divisions and infighting as the House GOP conference has failed to unite around a plan to avoid a government shutdown.

According to a source in the room, Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz and Speaker Kevin McCarthy had a heated exchange during the meeting. Gaetz stood up and confronted McCarthy about whether his allies paid conservative influencers to bash Gaetz in social media posts, an allegation the speaker’s office has denied.

According to a source in the room, McCarthy’s response was that he would not waste his time or money on Gaetz. According to another source, McCarthy also responded that he doesn’t know what Gaetz is working on, but he (the speaker) is donating $5 million to help keep the majority.

“I asked him whether or not he was paying those influencers to post negative things about me online,” Gaetz told CNN’s Manu Raju, confirming McCarthy’s statement.

McCarthy and Gaetz have had a tense relationship for a long time, and Gaetz has led the charge in threatening to force a vote to oust McCarthy as pressure builds on McCarthy during the shutdown spending fight and hardline conservatives balk at the prospect of passing any kind of short-term funding extension to keep the government open.

Members in the room could be heard complaining about Gaetz after the exchange, with one calling him a “scumbag” and another saying “F**k off,” according to a third source in the room.

McCarthy’s outside counsel sent a cease and desist letter to the person soliciting influencers to bash Gaetz on McCarthy’s behalf earlier this week, according to a copy of the letter obtained by CNN.

With only three days until government funding expires, Congress is on the verge of a shutdown, with the House and Senate at odds over how to proceed.

The Senate has drafted a bipartisan proposal to avoid a government shutdown and is working to move it through the chamber to final passage. However, House Republicans have largely rejected that plan, leaving the two chambers at odds.

House Republicans prepare for a budget battle

House Republicans are planning late-night votes on a series of spending bills on Thursday, though they may not have enough GOP support to pass and would die in the Senate.

If some or all of the bills fail, it could spark another chaotic scene on the House floor, but GOP leaders believe that if that happens, it will show that a short-term funding extension is the only viable option, as a number of hardline conservatives continue to say they are opposed to a stopgap bill to avert a shutdown.

Despite the fact that House GOP leadership does not currently have the votes for their short-term spending bill, three sources told CNN that the House will vote on a measure tomorrow.

McCarthy has been saying this was the plan all week, but as the hardliners dug in, it remained unclear whether he’d go ahead with it, risking an embarrassing vote and being seen as unable to pass a bill out of his chamber before the Saturday midnight deadline.

According to a Republican aide, one of the four individual spending bills set to be debated on the floor could be pulled due to strong opposition.

A bill focusing on the Department of Agriculture and other priorities may not be voted on due to concerns about a provision limiting access to abortion pills and the amount of spending cuts in the legislation.

“It’s in the ICU,” a Republican aide told CNN.

The Senate is working to advance a bipartisan bill.

Meanwhile, the Senate is working on a bipartisan stopgap bill to keep the government open until November 17 while also providing additional aid to Ukraine and disaster relief. McCarthy has so far rejected the bill.

According to senators, it could take until Monday to pass the Senate’s bill to keep the government open if GOP Sen. Rand Paul slows the process with his demand that the bill drop the $6.2 billion in aid to Ukraine it contains. That would push the shutdown deadline past Saturday evening.

Republicans are attempting to strike a deal that would grant Paul an amendment vote in exchange for expediting the process. A single senator can stall the process, and a vote in the chamber requires unanimous support.

On Thursday, the Senate took a procedural vote to advance the bipartisan stopgap bill, but it is unclear when a final passage vote will take place. The result was 76 to 22.

The government is preparing to shut down.

As the September 30th shutdown deadline approaches, the federal government has begun to prepare for its consequences.

A government shutdown could have far-reaching consequences across the country, affecting everything from air travel to clean drinking water, as many government operations would cease while services deemed “essential” would continue.

The nearly 4 million federal employees will feel the effects immediately. Essential employees will continue to work, but others will be furloughed until the shutdown ends. During the impasse, no payments will be made. A shutdown would put a strain on many people’s finances, as it did during the record 35-day funding lapse in 2018-2019.

Democrats and Republicans alike have been emphasizing the potential consequences of a shutdown as they warn against a funding lapse.

“It’s important to remember that if we shut down the government, those of us who are concerned about the border and want it to be improved will have to continue to work for nothing,” Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said at a news conference on Wednesday.

During a government shutdown, US Border Patrol agents will continue to perform their law enforcement functions, including apprehending migrants crossing the border illegally, but without pay.

The White House is warning of massive air travel disruptions as tens of thousands of air traffic controllers and Transportation Security Administration employees work without pay. Hundreds of TSA officers called in sick during the 2019 shutdown, many of them to find alternative employment.

The White House has warned that a government shutdown would result in “significant delays for travelers” across the country.

The White House has also warned of national security consequences, such as the 1.3 million active-duty troops who would not be paid during a shutdown.