ELECTIONS, POLITICS, & GOVERNMENT
Sen. Mike Lee on 1,500-page continuing resolution: ‘Christmastime legislative extortion’
Dec 20, 2024, 8:00 AM
Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah; Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla.; and Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., confer before joining other conservative Republicans to complain to reporters about the interim spending bill being crafted to avoid a shutdown of federal agencies, at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Dec. 18, 2024. (J. Scott Applewhite/Associated Press)
(J. Scott Applewhite/Associated Press)
WASHINGTON — Sen. Mike Lee called the effort to pass a 1,500-page continuing resolution ahead of the midnight Dec. 20 shutdown deadline “Christmastime legislative extortion,” saying legislative leaders try to pass massive spending bills ahead of the Christmas break every year.
The continuing resolution, which was the result of negotiations between Republicans and Democrats, was scuttled by House Republicans on Wednesday after President-elect Donald Trump, Vice President-elect JD Vance, as well as Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy — the future leaders of Trump’s government efficiency department — urged Republicans to vote against the billions of dollars in new spending for disaster relief, farmer subsidies and a significant salary increase for lawmakers.
Lee came out in opposition on social media but told the Deseret News Thursday he is in favor of a “clean” continuing resolution, one that would fund the government for a specific period of time without legislative add-ons — although he said disaster relief alone would not have been a “deal-breaker.”
But the House rejected a relatively “clean” resolution on Thursday evening, paving the way for a possible government shutdown starting Saturday. The latest resolution would have funded the government through March, provided some disaster relief, and moved the debt ceiling expiration to Jan. 30, 2027.
Read the full story and more from Suzanne Bates on deseret.com.
