House GOP Cancels September Votes, Heads Home Early
House GOP Cancels September Votes, Heads Home Early
The News
House Republican leaders canceled the final two weeks of the chamber's September session, sending members home to campaign about two months before the midterm elections.
Under the revised schedule announced Thursday, the House returns for votes the evening of Monday, Sept. 14, for what is now expected to be a single week of work, Roll Call reported.
That leaves roughly four working days on the House calendar before Election Day, according to The Independent — and it follows a monthlong recess.
Timeline
The House takes a monthlong recess, part of what critics quoted by AlterNet call one of the most "do nothing" sessions in history.
Two Democrats cross the aisle to rescue a procedural vote that was headed for failure. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said he got no advance warning.
President Trump signs a stopgap spending bill funding the government through Dec. 11.
Leadership announces the revised calendar scrapping the last two September weeks. The House is now expected to finish votes around Sept. 17.
Reactions
Left-leaning outlets read the move as retreat. AlterNet said Republicans are "basically giving up." Raw Story reported that leadership is eyeing the exits rather than risk more embarrassing floor fights over legislation going nowhere. The New Republic framed it as a five-week vacation followed by the rest of September off.
The right isn't uniformly defending it either. RedState called the short-notice cancellation a set of "troubling indicators" heading into the midterms.
Center coverage — The Hill and Roll Call — reported it more plainly as a schedule cut made possible by the spending bill already clearing.
What's Next
The House reconvenes the evening of Sept. 14 for about one week of votes, with Sept. 17 the expected last day before members scatter to campaign.
Leadership advised members the schedule could still change if the Senate adopts a budget resolution.
The open question is whether anything major reaches the floor in the four remaining days — and how the shortened session plays for Republicans defending the most competitive swing districts.
More
Government funding is set through Dec. 11, which removes the one deadline that would have forced the House back into session before November.
Polling cited in reporting on the midterm landscape shows Democrats positioned to win the House majority — the backdrop for both the schedule change and the leadership's difficulty holding its floor votes together.
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