McCarthy downplays risk of shutdown over Planned Parenthood
As Congress rushes to pass a government funding bill by Dec. 11, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy on Monday dismissed the possibility that a partisan standoff over funding for Planned Parenthood would cause the federal government to shut down.
“I do not hear people (calling for) shutting the government down over it right now,” McCarthy (R-Calif.) said, referring to stripping money from Planned Parenthood.
Speaking to reporters in his Capitol office, McCarthy signaled he would like to see language in the spending bill that would tighten restrictions on refugees coming from Syria. He said that the push to clamp down on refugee resettlement speaks to voters’ concern about homeland security.
“I think security is becoming the top issue that I am hearing, especially in the last two weeks,” McCarthy (R-Calif.) said. “Very concerned where the president is and where this country is.”
“I don’t look at the refugee issue as something to get votes for the omnibus” spending bill, he added. “I look at it as safety for America. … I think that bill needs to pass and become law whichever way it can.”
Congress has just eight working days before the government runs out of spending authority, and GOP leaders have not yet unveiled a bill to keep the government open through 2016. GOP leadership aides say top Republicans intend to unveil legislation early next week, in advance of a late-week vote.
Meanwhile, House Republican leaders plan to move in the coming weeks to strengthen immigration restrictions for visitors from so-called “Visa Waiver Program” countries. Citizens of 38 countries — including the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Spain and Switzerland — can stay in the United States for as long as three months without a visa.
McCarthy said that a task force of GOP lawmakers will meet Tuesday to discuss new regulations, such as requiring those countries to move to passports with biometric data.
White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest responded wryly to a question about a shutdown by noting that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has ruled out a shutdown “on a number of occasions.”
Speaking to reporters from Paris, where President Barack Obama is attending climate talks, Earnest added, “Obviously the Senate majority leader will have a lot to say about that outcome, so his steadfast commitment to ensuring that doesn’t happen is certainly something that we take some solace in.”
Earnest repeated the president’s vow not to sign a short-term spending measure — with a caveat. He said Obama would be open to a very limited stopgap if Congress “has reached an agreement and they may need a day or two to go through the mechanics.”
Sarah Wheaton contributed.