Speaker of the House Mike Johnson seeks to salvage a spending bill to keep the government open past Saturday, and a new report reveals deportations at al all-time high. 

House approves funding bill and sends to Senate hours before government shutdown deadline

Hours to go before a midnight federal government shutdown, the House approved a new plan late Friday from Speaker Mike Johnson that would temporarily fund federal operations and disaster aid, but drops President-elect Donald Trump's demands for a debt limit increase into the new year.Johnson said on Friday afternoon that Republicans had reached a consensus on a deal to fund the government.

Johnson insisted Congress would “meet our obligations” and not allow federal operations to shutter ahead of the Christmas holiday season. But the day's outcome was uncertain after Trump doubled down on his insistence that a debt ceiling increase be included in any deal — if not, he said in an early morning post, let the closures “start now.”

The bill was approved 366-34, and now goes to the Senate, for expected quick passage.

“We will not have a government shutdown,” Johnson said ahead of the vote.

It was the third attempt from Johnson, the beleaguered House speaker, to achieve one of the basic requirements of the federal government — keeping it open. And it raised stark questions about whether Johnson will be able to keep his job, in the face of angry GOP colleagues, and work alongside Trump and billionaire ally Elon Musk, who have called the legislative plays this time.

"So is this a Republican bill or a Democrat bill?" scoffed Trump's billionaire ally Elon Musk on social media.

The speaker added that lawmakers “will meet our obligations for our farmers who aid for the disaster victims all over the country, and for making sure that military and essential services and everyone who relies upon the federal government for a paycheck is paid over the holidays. I’ll give you the more details here in just a few moments.”

House Republicans met behind closed doors on next steps after Trump doubled-down on his insistence that a debt ceiling increase be included in any deal — and if not, he said in an early morning post, let the closures “start now” under President Joe Biden and before he takes office next month.

Trump's last-minute demand was almost an impossible ask, and Johnson had almost no choice but to work around his pressure for a debt ceiling increase. The speaker knew there wouldn’t be enough support within the GOP majority to pass any funding package, since many Republicans prefer to slash federal government and certainly wouldn’t allow more debt.

“If there is going to be a shutdown of government, let it begin now under the Biden Administration, not after January 20th, under 'TRUMP,'” Trump posted on Friday morning. "This is a Biden problem to solve, but if Republicans can help solve it, they will!!”

Instead, the Republicans, who will have full control of the White House, House and Senate next year, with big plans for tax cuts and other priorities, are showing they must routinely rely on Democrats for the votes needed to keep up with the routine operations of governing

The new 118-page package would fund the government at current levels through March and adds $100 billion in disaster aid and $10 billion in agricultural assistance to farmers.

Gone is Trump’s demand to lift the debt ceiling, which GOP leaders told lawmakers would be debated as part of their tax and border packages in the new year. Republicans made a so-called handshake agreement to raise the debt limit at that time while also cutting $2.5 trillion in spending over 10 years.

U.S. reports most noncitizen deportations in 10 years

With President-elect Donald Trump taking office in 31 days and pledging to begin mass deportations, Immigration and Customs Enforcement reported the removal of 271,484 noncitizens to 192 different countries during the 2024 fiscal year that ended Sept. 30.

It was the highest level of deportations in a decade and a 90% increase from 2023. 

More than 30% of those removed had criminal histories with an average of 5.63 convictions or charges per individual, the agency said. Many had been charged or convicted for assault, sexual assault, burglaries and weapons offenses. Some individuals ICE arrested were wanted in their home countries for crimes including terrorism and torture. 

In its annual report released Thursday, ICE credited the rise in noncitizen removals to an increase in deportation flights and streamlined procedures to return them to their home countries of El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras. 

Mexico was the top destination for noncitizen deportations, accounting for about 87,000 removals. followed by around 67,000 to Guatemala and about 46,000 to Honduras, the report said. Mexico and Central American countries are expected to continue to bear the brunt of deportations, partly because those governments more readily accept their respective citizens than some others and logistics are easier.

The agency had its first large flight to China in six years and also had planes stop in Albania, Angola, Egypt, Georgia, Ghana, Guinea, India, Mauritania, Romania, Senegal, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

ICE detained an average of 37,700 people a day over the recent 12-month period, a number determined by congressional funding. With detention space a potential hurdle for mass deportations, the state of Texas is offering rural land as a staging area.

ICE made 113,431 arrests during the latest period, down 34% from 170,590 a year earlier. The agency said a need to focus resources on the border with Mexico diverted attention from making arrests in the country's interior.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.