The U.S. House of Representatives will vote early Wednesday evening to end the longest government shutdown in history, Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) said.
“We’ll start the process probably around four, five o’clock. The actual vote on the bill to fund the government will probably come later, around seven o’clock,” the House majority leader told CNBC. “There’ll be, I’m sure, a good, thorough debate, but it’s so important that this gets done.”
If the spending bill gets through as planned, it will end an impasse that has lasted more than six weeks, resulting in furloughs for government workers, the closing of all federal government activities, the suspension of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and increased delays at airports heading into the holiday travel season.
The Senate on Monday approved the package, which would keep the government open until Jan. 30 and provide funding for agriculture, military programs and legislative agencies, while also providing back pay for workers affected by the shutdown.
President Donald Trump has indicated he will sign the bill into law.
Though the majority in the House is expected to be razor-thin, Scalise said he expects to peel off enough Democrats to get the package through.
“Some Democrats still want to play games and inflict pain on families across America, but we’ve got enough,” he said. “We may get a few more than that in the House who want to end this madness and just let let people get back to their lives.”
Both sides have traded blame over who is responsible for the shutdown. Polls have indicated voters more put the onus on Republicans, though an NBC News poll earlier this month showed Democrats faulted at the highest level in 30 years when compared to previous shutdowns.
“It’s madness, but it’s going to end today, hopefully, and let’s move on,” Scalise said.
