*** The House of Representatives abandoned plans to vote on a stopgap funding measure ahead of a scheduled lapse in appropriations coming on Friday. Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) blamed a Republican effort in the Senate to stall any continuing resolution that doesn't block funding for vaccine mandates affecting private businesses.
"It's incomprehensible to me that we can't pass a simple CR to keep the government open," Hoyer said on Wednesday.
Because of legislative rules, any temporary funding measure passed by the House would have to sail through the Senate via unanimous consent – but at least two Republicans have said they would withhold consent and force at least a nominal weekend shutdown while a CR is debated and passed.
"I think we'll get there, and certainly, nobody should be concerned about a government shutdown," Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said on Tuesday.
*** The House did pass three bipartisan cybersecurity bills on Wednesday, including a measure instructing the National Telecommunications and Information Administration to produce a report on the cybersecurity of the nation's mobile networks and the use of encryption on networks and devices.