House Republicans are experimenting with the idea of adding additional U.S. Secret Service funds to a temporary spending patch to avoid a partial shutdown on Oct. 1.
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) is set to vote on Wednesday night on his plan to avoid a government shutdown. The plan is a six-month budget patch known as a continuing resolution.
The act is likely to fail due to significant GOP opposition against any form of CR, and Democrats’ opposition towards the Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility Act (SAVE).
On Wednesday, several House Republicans indicated that they were preparing for a CR without conservative policies attached. This CR would only last through December – the position of the Senate Democratic majority.
Several GOP legislators also suggested that a combination of some additional funds for USSS would also receive widespread support, especially after the recent attempts to assassinate former President Trump, who was the GOP presidential candidate.
Rep. John Duarte (R-Calif.), one of the most vulnerable House GOP lawmakers in November’s elections, said that he would back such a measure if Wednesday’s vote failed.
“We have had two assassination attempts against the president within the last two months, and we are aware of the potential damage these attacks could cause to our country,” Duarte stated that if the situation is so serious that more Secret Service funding is needed, then it’s vital for democracy.
One senior Republican House member, when asked about the inevitable of a “clean”, December CR, without conservative policies, said: “I mean, if you look it up, that’s history.”
The Republican said it was “highly probable” that the failure of Wednesday’s vote would lead to discussions regarding additional USSS funding in a backup strategy “given all that has happened.”
A senior House GOP member said that “there is appetite to do it”, but also noted some logistical issues, such as whether or not additional funding for USSS would make a difference in the run-up to the elections.
The issue is: “Now that you have the money, how can you get a job so quickly?” The senior legislator said. “It is something that we are working on enough to mention, but I haven’t been to any meetings about it.”
“I think most of us realize that obviously, it’s … not like the Senate’s going to take up our package. So they’re going to bounce it back to us with just a three-month CR,” another House Republican said. “If we don’t take it up, I don’t know what the other options are.”
The second GOP legislator asserted that there is a good appetite among House Republicans for adding more USSS funding into a short-term budget bill.
We spent a lot of time on the floor working on appropriations measures that we knew would never get anywhere in the Senate. It was an enormous amount of time. “That’s exactly what will happen,” said a third House Republican of a CR that does not include the SAVE Act.
Some GOP lawmakers insisted, however, that if this was true, Congress shouldn’t entertain requests to pair a CR and emergency USSS funding.
Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) said, “I am less concerned about the budget and more concerned about leadership.”
Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-Ga.), a member of the House Appropriations Committee, stated that “The Secret Service is having a problem with its priorities. I don’t believe they have a problem with funding.”
Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) said the USSS issues were more “organizational”, rather than financial.
Some of this is common sense. Why hasn’t the White House said “You know what?” Donald Trump is an ex-president who is running for president. Donalds said, “You can’t just treat him as another presidential candidate.”
Johnson’s office was contacted for comment.
The House will also vote on Friday on a bipartisan measure that would give Trump and Vice-President Kamala Harris the same level of Secret Service Protection as President Biden.
