President Donald Trump made progress Wednesday in convincing GOP holdouts to back a government funding extension ahead of a March 14 shutdown deadline.
Rep. Eric Burlison (R-Mo.) said in a brief interview Wednesday after an afternoon meeting with Trump at the White House that he is now open to supporting the six-month funding patch that Speaker Mike Johnson and Trump are pushing.
Burlison was undecided going into the meeting with the president and other House GOP fiscal hawks.
“I’ve never voted for a CR, but I’m willing to consider it to back the president, if necessary, if it gives him some wiggle room,” he said, adding that he wanted to “get to a place where we actually cut spending.”
Trump, Burlison added, is “not a fan of the whole situation that we’re in, either, but we got to get past this point.”
Johnson and Trump have several other holdouts to convince. But two key House Freedom Caucus members, Reps. Chip Roy of Texas and Andy Harris of Maryland, told reporters at the White House Wednesday that they believe other holdouts will get on board following the president’s latest push.
Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.), another holdout, said he was still “listening” and looking to see “what their definition of a clean CR” was after the meeting, referring to a continuing resolution, the technical name for the stopgap bill. Burchett said he was still seeking a reduction in spending.
With just over a week until the shutdown deadline, Hill Republicans are trying to tee up a funding bill that would extend current government funding levels until September. Democrats are signaling they’ll oppose the legislation, giving GOP leaders little room for error.
