The Senate overwhelmingly advanced a stopgap spending bill this week designed to keep the federal government open through the fall midterm elections, allowing lawmakers to sidestep a potential shutdown just weeks before voters head to the polls. The vote came even as the SAVE America Act continues to stall on the Senate floor.
Senators voted 89-4 to invoke cloture on the motion to proceed, clearing the first major procedural hurdle for the continuing resolution. The lopsided tally reflected broad appetite for avoiding another funding lapse after years of bruising budget fights and repeated shutdowns.
What the Bill Would Do
The legislation would keep federal agencies funded at roughly current levels through Dec. 11. It also includes a provision temporarily blocking a Trump administration proposal that would give political appointees final authority over scientific grant decisions. Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Susan Collins, R-Maine, and other lawmakers opposed the policy and pushed to include the safeguard.
The measure has the backing of both Republican and Democratic leaders on the Appropriations Committee, as well as Senate leadership.
A Tight Timeline Before Recess
Senate leaders hope to pass the bill before lawmakers begin their monthlong August recess at the end of the week. Doing so would require bipartisan agreement to speed up several procedural steps.
If the Senate approves the measure, it will head to the House when lawmakers return in September. The House passed its own continuing resolution last month, but that version would fund the government for a shorter period and omits several provisions the Senate added. Reconciling the two versions will be the next test.
Appropriations Remain Stalled
If enacted, the stopgap would give Congress more time to negotiate full-year appropriations bills for fiscal year 2027, a task that has proven difficult amid ongoing budget talks. Appropriators remain at an impasse over overall discretionary spending levels.
In the Senate, lawmakers have yet to bring any of the 12 annual appropriations bills to the floor for final consideration. The House has passed three of its 12 measures, but those bills are expected to meet resistance in the Senate, where Democrats have objected to several of their provisions, according to The Hill.
Passing an annual budget is one of Congress’ core constitutional functions. Yet the last time Congress passed a budget on time was in 1996, for the 1997 budget year, at the end of then-President Bill Clinton’s first term.
The SAVE America Act and the Filibuster Problem
Republicans expanded their Senate majority after the 2024 elections, but it remains well short of the 60 votes needed to overcome a filibuster. As a result, Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., has struggled to advance much of what Republican and Democratic voters want, including the SAVE America Act.
The bill includes election security and integrity provisions, such as requiring proof of citizenship and a government-issued ID to vote. Those measures are supported by more than 80 percent of Americans, including majorities of both Republicans and Democrats. The bill has been a priority of President Trump’s for a year.
With the midterm cycle approaching, the measure could be closer to passage than it has been in months, though it may take Vice President JD Vance’s tiebreaking vote to get it across the finish line.
Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D., said Senate Republicans are working through the weekend to restructure the bill so it can move through the budget reconciliation process. That approach would allow passage with a simple majority rather than the 60 votes typically needed to beat a filibuster.
Appearing on Newsmax’s “Saturday Agenda,” Hoeven said the House-passed budget resolution gives the Senate a procedural path around the filibuster, provided the bill’s voter identification provisions comply with Senate reconciliation rules and survive review by the Senate parliamentarian.
“We’re in session this week, and we’re working on it.”
“The key is that we get that passed. We can do that with 51 votes, which is why we’re working so hard to do it,” he added.
