Republicans Face a Dec. 11 Funding Deadline in a Lame-Duck Congress. Keep the Lights On.

The facts come first below. My opinion follows in the section marked as opinion.

Republicans still hold the gavels for less than two months. Congress returns next week for a lame-duck session that must fund the government before a mid-December deadline, pass a defense policy bill, and decide how much unfinished business to leave for a Democratic majority in January.

These accounts come from reports read Thursday evening, Nov. 5, Central time. Negotiations have not produced a final deal.

Leaders from both parties say they want to avoid another shutdown and move a defense policy bill, Yahoo News reported, while warning that disagreement on the details could make the process bumpy. The Whole Read stressed that any path still needs both chambers and the president.

The Dec. 11 clock

Yahoo News reported that the government will shut down again on Dec. 12 if Congress does not pass a funding bill — the day after the current stopgap ends. The outlet said Republican leaders are eyeing a bill that would lock in current spending levels for a full year, while Democrats have an incentive to push a short-term measure that leaves the hard choices to the next Congress. As of Thursday evening, Nov. 5, no funding deal had been announced.

The Whole Read, citing the text of the Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act, 2027 (P.L. 119-103), said funding under that law ends Dec. 11, 2026, along with highway and some veterans program extensions. It listed the basic paths: another continuing resolution, full-year spending bills alone or bundled as an omnibus, or a lapse. The outgoing Republican-led Congress has to act before Democrats take over Jan. 3, the report said.

Bloomberg Government said Congress will return next week for a two-month window before Democrats take control of both chambers in January, and that Republicans' potential checklist includes government funding for fiscal 2027, national defense policy, program extensions and a possible reconciliation package tied to Iran war funding and election security grants.

Defense money and unfinished business

Yahoo News said Congress will have two "must-pass" items when it returns: avoiding another shutdown and passing an annual defense policy bill. It reported that the Trump administration has asked Congress for $1.5 trillion in military funding for 2027, that Democrats want that number cut by hundreds of billions, and that White House insistence on more Iran war money could complicate a deal.

Bloomberg Government said Speaker Mike Johnson returns as a lame-duck Republican leader after Tuesday's losses. Yahoo News said Johnson "reportedly told" attendees at a Tuesday watch party, "Our job is nowhere close to being finished yet."

For how House Democrats say they will use the majority they take in January, see Jeffries Asks Democrats to Elect Him Speaker; 100-Day Push.

None of these reports claims a funding deal is done. The calendar is the hard fact. Dec. 11 ends the current stopgap. Jan. 3 seats a new Congress.

Bloomberg Government also listed extensions of agricultural, nutrition and surface transportation programs and a bipartisan energy-permitting deal among items Republicans may try to clear. Those are the kinds of bills that often get bundled when the calendar is short and the majority is about to change.

Opinion:

A lame duck is not a vacation. It is the last chance for an outgoing majority to fund the government without a shutdown and to finish work it chose to postpone until after Election Day. That was a gamble. Now the bill is due.

Republicans should not lock in a full year of spending just to spite the voters who just hired Democrats. Democrats should not force a shutdown to grab a better deal in January. Both parties have already shown they can close the government for weeks. Ordinary people pay for that show.

Keep the lights on. Name the Iran costs in the open. Pass what must pass. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. Walk in the light. Do the job before the clock runs out.

If either party treats the stopgap as a hostage note, say so out loud. Voters can tell the difference between governing and positioning.