House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) started debate on a Republican bill calling for passage of H.R. 1, their FY 2011 spending bill, by arguing Senate inaction on a spending bill is raising the risk of a government shutdown.

"Mr. Speaker, I want to underline the fact that we do not want a government shutdown," Cantor said. "Yet as Senate Democrats refuse to pass a bill, that unsettling prospect looms ever larger, which is why they must act."

The House on Friday morning rejected a controversial amendment to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) authorization bill that would have made it easier to form air and rail unions. Failure to pass the amendment will make it much harder to win Senate passage of the FAA bill and sets up a likely veto of the bill even if the Senate were to approve it.

The amendment, from Rep. Steve LaTourette (R-Ohio), would have allowed a National Mediation Board (NMB) decision from 2010 to stand. That decision allowed unions to be formed based only on the votes of voting workers. Prior to last year's change, non-voting workers were counted as "no" votes.

The FAA bill, H.R. 658, repeals the NMB decision, and LaTourette's amendment would have removed this language from the bill. Earlier this week, the White House warned it would veto the FAA bill unless the labor language was removed.

Only 16 Republicans voted for the LaTourette amendment, which failed in a 206-220 vote.

Senate Committees will engage in a number of housekeeping items next week, including confirmation hearings for several administration nominees. They also will begin discussion on topics that could take center stage in the Senate later this year, including biofuel in the Energy and Natural Resources Committee and border security in the Committee on Homeland Security.

Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) said in the context of a budget debate on Friday that he has a "low opinion" of the Senate due to its inability to move on a spending bill this year.

"I'm pretty fed up with the Senate too, and I share your low opinion of them," DeFazio said after Rep. Rob Woodall (R-Ga.) spoke. Woodall did not say he has a "low opinion" of the Senate, but said repeatedly throughout the debate that the Senate needs to pass some version of a budget before the House and Senate can negotiate on a budget agreement.

House Democrat cites educational cartoon from the 1970s to accuse Republicans of failing to understand the Constitution.

House Democrats on Friday morning indicated they will fight Republican spending cuts every step of the way, by raising a point of order against a bill that would seek to approve the House GOP spending bill for FY 2011 if the Senate fails to act on a spending bill by Wednesday.

The procedural move was punctuated by what was likely the first of many Democratic arguments against the bill, H.R. 1255, which Republicans hope to approve today.

Democrats acknowledged that their point of order was simply a way to protest their inability to debate amendments to the bill, and the House voted 219-172 to move on with consideration of the rule and the bill itself. Every voting Republican favored taking up the measure, and every voting Democrat opposed it.

The House returns at 9 a.m. Friday to take up H.R. 1255, the Government Shutdown Prevention Act. This bill would attempt to pass into law H.R. 1, the GOP spending bill for FY 2011, should the Senate not approve any FY 2011 spending bill by next Wednesday. It would also prevent members of Congress — and the president — from being paid during a shutdown.

But the bill is largely seen as a symbolic attempt by Republicans to absolve themselves from blame should a shutdown occur. House passage of the bill does not turn H.R. 1 into law, as the Senate has not acted on the bill, and is not expected to.

While Democrats were hoping to amend the bill, H.R. 1255 will be taken up under a closed rule, with no amendments. Look for some tense debate over both the rule to the bill, and the bill itself, later today.

The House will also consider five remaining amendments to the four-year Federal Aviation Administration authorization bill. See these two Thursday posts (this one and this one) for details on amendments accepted and rejected so far.

The House late Thursday night accepted six amendments to the four-year extension of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

The House concluded consideration of amendments after 9 p.m., and will return Friday at 9 a.m. to take up roll-call votes on a handful of amendments, then vote on the final bill. The most controversial amendment to be considered Friday would reverse a 2010 decision by the National Mediation Board that allows unions to be formed based on the votes only of voting workers.

Prior to this change, non-voting workers were counted as "no" votes for forming a union.

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Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev) said leadership has finally come to an agreement that will allow the Senate to vote on an amendment to the Small Business Administration (SBA) funding bill that would repeal the 1099 tax reporting requirements created by the healthcare reform law.

That vote is now scheduled for Tuesday morning.