Johnson reportedly considering last-minute border amendment, Conservatives say

House Freedom Caucus Chairman Bob Good, R-Va., on Thursday said House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is “considering” his group’s pitch on a last-minute border amendment to avoid a government shutdown.

“The Speaker is considering it, and he’s working through the mechanics to make sure that … we have the best path forward on how to do it within the legislative process,” Good said while leaving Johnson’s office on Thursday, according to the Hill.

The amendment would consist of the H.R. 2 Secure the Border Act that passed by the House last year, according to the news outlet.

A partial shutdown would begin in less than two days if Congress fails to act.

The Democrat-majority Senate and Republican-controlled House of Representatives are far behind in carrying out their basic duty of funding the government for the fiscal year that began on Oct. 1, with lawmakers scrambling to keep the lights on through early March, to give them more time to pass a full-year bill.

Top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer of New York and his House Republican counterpart, Johnson, early this month agreed to a $1.59 trillion discretionary spending level for the year that ends on Sept. 30. But in a sign of how bitterly the House is divided, the two parties now disagree on that number, with Democrats saying the actual amount agreed to is $1.66 trillion.

“I think we’re on a good path to getting it done,” Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., told Reuters, referring to the prospects of passing the temporary spending bill on Thursday or Friday.

Johnson said the plan “has not changed.”

“The House is voting on the stop-gap measure tonight to keep the government open,” his spokesperson, Raj Shah, posted on X in response to the Freedom Caucus push.