The looming spending fight nobody is talking about

While reconciliation has dominated recent conversations on Capitol Hill, Republican lawmakers have yet to address the fast-approaching funding deadline.

Senate and House Republicans have dedicated the last few weeks to getting their respective budget blueprints passed. But as lawmakers lay out lengthy proposals to codify President Donald Trump's legislative priorities, they are also faced with a looming government shutdown.

The current continuing resolution, commonly referred to as a CR, is set to expire soon — on March 14. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and the GOP leadership have not yet put forth a drafted CR.

Despite Johnson's impressive reconciliation victory, he is up against another tall task in the near future.

Although the CR hasn't been the focal point of closed-door discussions, Republicans are beginning to talk spending strategy behind the scenes. One added complication as negotiations start to take place is how Republicans aim to extend the current rate of funding, as a CR does, while also advocating for DOGE-style cuts.

Johnson told Blaze News in an exclusive interview Monday that he has been in close communication with Elon Musk, reaffirming his commitment to codify the DOGE's directives. When asked about how he will balance a CR while also maintaining the DOGE cuts, he noted that there will likely be "anomalies" to amend the spending levels for certain agencies.

"You add anomalies to a CR," Johnson said Wednesday. "You can increase some spending. You can decrease some spending. You can add language that says, for example, the dramatic changes that have been made to USAID would be reflected in the ongoing spending."

"It would be a clean CR, mostly, I think, but with some of those changes to adapt to the new realities here," Johnson added. "The new reality is less government, more efficiency, a better return for the taxpayers, and I think that's something everybody should welcome."

Notably, the House will be out of session for two days leading up to the funding deadline and the week following. This is worth pointing out because spending fights have historically been resolved in the 11th hour.

To complicate matters further, Republicans have an incredibly narrow two-seat majority, which means Johnson can afford to lose only one GOP vote on the CR. It is unlikely that Democrats will lend a hand to Johnson, and he told Blaze News that he has no intention of relying on Democrats to pass legislation in the future.

Despite Johnson's impressive reconciliation victory, he is up against another tall task in the near future.

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