House

House Democrats on Tuesday used debate on a short-term spending package to force a largely symbolic vote on ending tax breaks for major oil companies like Exxon and Shell.

The "motion to recommit" failed on a mostly party-line vote, but it will provide Democrats a hook to accuse Republicans of catering to “Big Oil” at a time of rising gasoline prices. Motions to recommit are a procedural mechanism that allow the minority party a chance to alter bills.

The underlying two-week spending package passed the House easily.

More than 100 Democrats joined all but six Republicans to support a two-week measure aimed at averting a government shutdown.

The House on Tuesday afternoon approved a rule for considering H.J. Res. 44, the two-week spending measure that is expected to pass later in the day.

The rule allows one hour of debate on the resolution and was approved in a largely party-line vote of 251-170, with only 15 Democrats supporting it. Democrats generally opposed the rule because it does not allow any Democratic amendments to be considered.

But the vote on the actual resolution is expected to have more Democratic support, as Democrats are acknowledging that passing it is the only way to keep the federal government funded after March 4. During the debate, Democrats largely skirted the specifics of the two-week spending bill, and instead trained their fire on H.R. 1, a full FY 2011 spending bill that would cut $61 billion from current spending levels.

House Republicans on Tuesday framed the two-week spending extension it will vote on today as a way of giving the Senate more time to consider the full FY 2011 spending bill, which nearly all Democrats oppose.

"Most importantly, this measure averts a government shutdown, and allows the Senate time to continue to consider H.R. 1, the bill that we successfully passed in this chamber just one week ago," Rep. Rob Woodall (R-Ga.) said in debate that started at 12:30 p.m. Woodall also said that after more than 50 hours of debate in the House last month, H.R. 1 "now sits idly in the Senate."

Freshman Rep. Ben Quayle (R-Ariz.) on Tuesday rejected predictions that GOP spending cut plans would cost hundreds of thousands of jobs, and said these  estimates are coming from economists who sympathize with Democrats.

Quayle's comments on the floor came just one day after Moody's Economy.com analyst Mark Zandi said the FY 2011 spending bill supported by Republicans would cost 700,000 jobs. But Quayle said Zandi routinely supports Democratic spending plans.

"I'm sure Mr. Zandi is a nice enough person, but in recent years, he hasn't seen a spending increase he didn't like," Quayle said. "He was the Democrats' go-to guy when they were looking for an economist to endorse the stimulus, and he even endorsed a second stimulus package after the initial $1 trillion package was signed into law."

The House gaveled in at 10 a.m. Tuesday, but will not take up the business of the day -- passing a two-week spending bill -- until noon.

The House is expected to approve the spending bill in two votes: one on the rule, H.Res. 115, and another on the spending resolution itself, H.J.Res. 44. Final votes are expected by 4 p.m., as Republicans want to get the bill to the Senate today so it can approve the measure this week, before the current spending resolution expires on Friday.

Passage seems increasing assured in the House, as Democrats are largely standing down in their opposition to the bill. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has registered some opposition to the bill, but did not put forward a Democratic substitute amendment that would have been voted on today. Senate Democrats also appear ready to pass the bill in order to ensure funding for the government after this week.

Members of the Congressional Black Caucus on Monday night said they oppose a longer-term spending bill for the rest of FY 2011, but the extent to which these members might oppose the bill today is unclear.

And in a Whip Notice this morning, House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) urged a "no" vote on the rule, but importantly did not make a recommendation to vote against the spending resolution itself. Instead, the notice seemed to take a middle ground position, by noting that the GOP bill includes some cuts that President Obama supports, but does not include "any kind of plan to create certainty or jobs in the economy."

Black lawmakers said GOP-proposed budget cuts would move the country in the opposite direction of the civil rights movement.

The House approved three non-controversial bills Monday night under a suspension of the rules.

The first, H.R. 394, would amend the judicial code to hold that U.S. district courts do not have original jurisdiction over civil actions between U.S. citizens and non-U.S. residents. It was approved in a 402-0 vote.

The second bill, H.R. 347, would explicitly allow for fines and prison terms of up to 10 years against anyone who knowingly enters the White House or the vice president's residence without lawful authority to do so.

There is already authority under Washington DC law to punish these trespassers, but making it explicit was seen as a non-controversial item. The bill was accepted in a 399-3 vote, and only Reps. Justin Amash (R-Mich.), Paul Broun (R-Ga.) and Ron Paul (R-Texas) voted against it.

H.R. 368, would clarify that the prosecution of a federal official that begins in state court should be moved to a U.S. district court. This bill was approved in a 396-4 vote; Amash, Broun, Paul and Tom McClintock (R-Calif.) voted against this bill.

The House Rules Committee on Monday night approved a rule allowing for a short debate on a two-week spending resolution that would keep the federal government operating until March 18, setting a vote on the rule and the resolution itself on Tuesday.

The committee approved a closed rule for the spending resolution that will not allow amendments, and the committee rejected requests to have two Democratic amendments be made in order for Tuesday. The first, offered by Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-Fla.) on behalf of Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (Del-D.C.), would have exempted the District of Columbia from any government shutdown.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) used his first floor speech since the Presidents Day recess to call on Democrats to join Republicans in cutting spending.

"Between maintaining the status quo on spending or cutting spending, the choice could not be more clear," said McConnell Monday on the floor of the Senate.

House Republicans have passed a continuing resolution to fund the government through the end of the 2011 fiscal year, which cuts $61 billion in spending. It now rests in the Senate. House Republicans are also putting together a stopgap measure that would fund the government for the next two weeks in order to prevent a government shutdown, should the measure fail to pass the upper chamber. The short-term measure cuts $4 billion in spending. 

McConnell proceeded to repeat a common refrain among Republicans, calling overspending and the deficit the "top threat to our economy."

"Washington's inability to live within our means is the greatest single threat to our future," said McConnell. "Democrats in Congress need to rethink the approach they have been taking up to now. Stop spending money we don't have." 

McConnell endorsed House Republicans' stopgap measure, and targeted President Obama's 2012 budget proposal for freezing the budget rather than making deep cuts.

"At no point in this projection does the government spend less than it brings in," said McConnell. "It doesn't even try. They want to spend hundreds of billions more than we bring in. And on, and on, and on."

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) also came to the floor, but limited his words to setting the Senate floor schedule for the rest of Monday.

The Senate remains in a period of morning business until 3.30 p.m.