By Bo Erickson, Katharine Jackson, Andy Sullivan and Richard Cowan
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Republicans in the U.S. Congress mounted a third attempt to avert a government shutdown on Friday with only hours to spare, after two previous plans were scuttled by President-elect Donald Trump and members of their own party.
Republican Representative Ralph Norman told reporters that party leaders planned to hold a vote on a third spending bill, though he did not provide details.
Others said they would not try to win over Democrats whose support likely will be needed to extend funding past midnight Friday (0500 GMT Saturday), when it is due to expire.
“We’re not working with Democrats,” Republican Representative Nancy Mace said.
If Congress does not pass a spending package, funding for everything from law enforcement to national parks will be disrupted and millions of federal workers will go unpaid.
Authorities warned that travelers during the busy Christmas season could face long lines at airports. Sources said the White House has alerted government agencies to prepare for an imminent shutdown. The federal government last shut down for 35 days during Trump’s first White House term over a dispute about border security.
Several media outlets reported that Republicans planned to hold multiple votes that would allow lawmakers to vote separately on elements that have previously been bundled together. The House would then vote separately on extending government funding into March, disaster aid, and farm aid that is due to expire at the end of the year.
Lawmakers also might vote separately on raising the debt ceiling — a difficult task that Trump wants Congress to do before he takes office on Jan. 20.
“We have a plan,” House Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters. “We’re expecting votes this morning.”
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said he has been in touch with Johnson, but has not seen the latest Republican plan.
It would be the third attempt for Johnson, who saw his first package — a bipartisan deal negotiated with Democrats who still control the Senate and the White House — collapse on Wednesday after an online fusillade of criticism by Trump and Elon Musk, his billionaire adviser.
A second package, which paired government funding and disaster aid with Trump’s demand to lift the national debt limit, failed to pass the House on Thursday as Democrats and 38 Republicans voted against it.
Democrats accused Johnson of caving to pressure from an unelected billionaire, while Republican opponents said they would not vote for a package that increased government spending and cleared the way for trillions of dollars in increased debt.
Trump, who takes office in one month, overnight ratcheted up his rhetoric, calling for a five-year suspension of the U.S. debt ceiling even after the House rejected a two-year extension.
“Congress must get rid of, or extend out to, perhaps, 2029, the ridiculous Debt Ceiling. Without this, we should never make a deal,” Trump wrote in a post on his social media platform shortly after 1 a.m.
Previous fights over the debt ceiling have spooked financial markets, as a U.S. government default would send credit shocks around the world. The limit has been suspended under an agreement that technically expires on Jan. 1, though lawmakers likely would not have had to tackle the issue before the spring.
