As Johnson locks into funding fight, House Republicans' suspicions grow: 'Toying with a government shutdown'

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, is pushing ahead with a plan to avert a partial government shutdown scheduled for later this month, despite growing anxiety among House Republicans.

Johnson's plan would include a six-month extension of current fiscal year government funding levels, known as a continuing resolution (CR), combined with a Republican bill to require proof of citizenship in the voter registration process.

As of Tuesday afternoon, House Republican leadership is expected to vote on the bill on Wednesday, with at least six Republicans already expected to vote against it.

“We're not looking at other alternatives or other measures. We think it's the right thing to do,” Johnson told reporters about combining CR with the Protecting American Voter Eligibility Act, or SAVE Act.

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The bill passed a key test vote on Tuesday, followed by debate and final passage of the bill. The bill passed 209-206, with Reps. Andy Biggs, R-Arizona, and Matt Rosendale, R-Montana, opposed, with the latter being one of six Republicans to publicly oppose the bill.

Multiple Republican lawmakers told Fox News Digital that Johnson made similar remarks during a closed-door meeting earlier in the day, the House Republican conference's first meeting since returning from a six-week recess.

Some, such as Ralph Norman MP of the Royal Society of Scotland, praised his determination.

“He's ready to fight,” Norman, who is normally opposed to CR, told Fox News Digital. “There are some things I don't like about it, but overall it's a good thing.”

But House Republicans, speaking freely on condition of anonymity, said there was little point in holding a vote on a bill that, if passed by the House, would almost certainly not pass in the Democratic-controlled Senate.

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“There are no votes and no solutions to the problem,” one Republican lawmaker told Fox News Digital in a text message.

“I don't think that's a good idea,” said another House Republican.

“It will not become law and it will not be signed by Biden,” they said, noting that it would have no effect on this year's election. “So if we do this the day after the election, it will apply to the next term at the next election, and that would be the most reasonable way to do it.”

Rep. Ralph Norman praised Johnson for sticking to his plan. (Getty Images)

“Because they're trying to shut down the government eight weeks before the presidential election.”

Some Republican defectors oppose the CR in principle, believing it to be an unnecessary extension of government expansion, and some have raised national security concerns about how a six-month extension without an increase in military spending could affect national security.

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Meanwhile, at least two more lawmakers, Reps. John Rutherford (R-Fla.) and Victoria Spaatz (R-Ind.), expressed skepticism but did not outright oppose the bill.

“I'm opposed to it, but I'm not going to vote for a government shutdown,” Rutherford told reporters, citing concerns about the defense budget.

Spartz opposed the “omnibus spending” that CR represents and questioned whether Johnson was willing to gamble on a government shutdown.

“Are we really going to take that hill? We'd better bring the American people with us and tell them what's going to happen,” Spaatz said.

While Johnson insisted he was sticking to his plan, which was also advocated by former President Trump, other lawmakers in his meeting indicated they were exploring next steps.

The bill is unlikely to pass in Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer's chamber. (Reuters/Mike Seeger)

Rep. Don Bacon, a Republican from Nebraska, suggested Republicans would ultimately agree to a budget extension without other legislation, possibly through December — something senior Republicans and Democrats have been arguing for months.

“There will be an agreement in both houses, but it will probably be a short-term agreement,” Bacon said.

Asked whether congressional negotiators were already working on a Plan B, House Appropriations Chairman Tom Cole (R-Okla.) told Fox News Digital, “We always have options open.”

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With only a four-seat majority and at least six defections, Johnson's bill would almost certainly need Democratic votes to pass the House.

Five Democrats voted in favor of the SAVE Act when it was passed earlier this year, but it's unclear whether they would support a combination of the measure and a stopgap spending bill, as leaders in the House, Senate and White House are opposed to it.