Johnson and House Republicans introduced the streamlined legislation on Thursday, which then failed to pass a vote that evening. It is not clear what they will do next.
Lawmakers are not expected to vote again Thursday, meaning they will return Friday morning with less than 24 hours on the clock before a possible shutdown.
But it is clear that the partisan blame game is in full swing. After the bill was defeated Thursday, Johnson told reporters that it was “very disappointing” that nearly all Democrats in the House voted against it.
“I think it’s really irresponsible for us to risk stopping these issues on things they’ve already agreed to,” he said.
Johnson will likely need the support of Democrats, especially as divisions within his own party over the bill became apparent this week.
But Democrats are unlikely to help Johnson support an updated funding bill, accusing it of violating their bipartisan agreement.
“You are breaking a bipartisan agreement, you are responsible for the consequences,” wrote House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries on X, which is owned by Musk.
And others appeared to mock Republicans for appearing to accept their leadership from the unelected Mr. Musk.
On the House floor Thursday, Connecticut Rep. Rosa DeLauro — the top Democratic appropriator in the House — called the billionaire “President Musk,” prompting laughter from fellow Democrats.
“President Musk said, ‘Don’t do it, shut down the government,'” she said.
Still, Johnson must find a way to win over Democrats to pass the spending bill, especially if pent-up anger in his own caucus is set to boil over.
Timing is also important. These negotiations usually take weeks.
