WASHINGTON — The House of Representatives on Friday evening voted to approve a short-term spending bill to fund the government until March 14, coming just hours before the midnight deadline to avoid a government shutdown.
The final vote was 366 to 34 as the government avoided a shutdown after two days of chaos caused by Elon Musk and President-elect Donald Trump.
All 34 votes against the bill were from Republicans and one member, Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX), voting present. The deal caps off a chaotic week for lawmakers and foreshadowed how the four years could go once Trump takes office in January.
“We are really grateful that tonight, in bipartisan fashion, with overwhelming majority of votes, we passed the American Relief Act of 2025. This is a very important piece of legislation,” House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.,) told reporters after the vote. “It funds the government, of course, until March of 2025. That was a big priority for us.”
The proposal includes $100 billion in aid to communities recovering from natural disasters, including 2023 wildfires in Maui and the post-hurricane flooding in North Carolina.
The White House also backed the agreement, releasing a statement to confirm.
“President Biden supports moving this legislation forward and ensuring that the vital services the government provides for hardworking Americans — from issuing Social Security checks to processing benefits for veterans — can continue as well as to grant assistance for communities that were impacted by devastating hurricanes,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said.
Musk appeared to endorse the plan, saying Johnson “did what he could” to get the bill across the finish line. Trump has chosen to stay silent on the new bill being passed but is reportedly furious that it did not include the elimination of the debt ceiling, his lone request.
Democratic Rep. Hakeem Jeffries said Friday that Trump was rushing to eliminate the debt limit so Republicans can pass a tax cut for the wealthy next year.
“A painful government shutdown that will crash the economy and hurt working class Americans, because they would rather enact massive tax cuts for their billionaire donors than fund cancer research for children,” Jeffries said.
