Well, when I say that "the House" is meeting today, what I really mean is that a handful of Members will utilize the chamber this morning to hold a
pro forma session, probably lasting only minutes, to propose that the House agree by unanimous consent to the continuing appropriations bill passed by the Senate on Monday.
But as The Hill notes:
The House is on course Thursday to pass a one-week spending bill that will keep the government running through Oct. 4. The measure is expected to be approved by unanimous consent; leadership isn't expecting anyone to jump ship on the vote, aides said.
But first things first.
Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), a leading critic of government spending, won't object to the bill, his office said. The offices of other key conservatives ducked calls on Wednesday, including that of Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.), about whether they intend to seize the spotlight and force the government to the brink of a shutdown.
A single objection Thursday would force Congress to return to work Friday to head off a shutdown, with the new fiscal year starting Saturday.
There are a few other guesses out there as to who might be selfish enough to try to grab the spotlight on this one. (Look for more about that this Sunday, from David Nir.) But odds are it won't be Michele Bachmann. She hasn't shown her face in the House chamber since August 1st, missing the last 30+ votes. It'd be awfully calculated for her to suddenly show up for work now, only to force the rest of her colleagues to fly back to DC on a moment's notice to try to clean up her mess.
But there are others out there perhaps just as crazy.
The Clerk's office tells us that we can expect the House to convene today at 11 a.m. ET, and the unanimous consent request should come shortly after that, if you'd like to keep an eye on 'em. (They'll naturally run through the Pledge of Allegiance and an opening prayer first.)
Odds of something going wrong: very, very low. Yes, someone might want to showboat. After all, we're here discussing it, so that tells you that someone just might be crazy enough to do it. But the thing is, if someone objects, that means all the rest of their colleagues will have to cancel all their plans and fly back to Washington on Friday, only to vote overwhelmingly to pass the thing. The guy who objects to this is in for a giant wedgie.
Still...
8:16 AM PT (Barbara Morrill): Passed without drama.
House approves bill by unanimous consent and no one objects. There was no vote. Only 3 members present: Harris, Culberson and Van hollen.