Johnson stresses government shutdown 'ball' will be in Democrats 'corner'

House Speaker Mike Johnson on Tuesday told reporters that it will be up to Democrats to keep the government funded through the next fiscal year, as Congress stares down an Oct. 1 deadline.

The comment comes as lawmakers return to Capitol Hill from their August recess. Republicans are primarily looking for ways to advance President Donald Trump's agenda with a narrow majority and avoid a government shutdown next month.

In March, Congress passed a continuing resolution to keep the government open for six months. But the funding in the bill expires Sept. 30. Congress will have to either pass another continuing resolution to fund the government for another six months or pass regular appropriations bills to avoid a government shutdown. 

Johnson said Republicans are already moving forward with the appropriations process. Before the break, Republicans in the House passed Veteran Affairs funding as the first appropriations bill of fiscal year 2026.

“The ball will be in [the Democrats] corner,” Johnson told reporters. “We’ve been moving forward on appropriations. We’ll be gathering steam to do that. We do not believe it’s in the nation’s interest to close the government down. So if [Senate Minority Leader Chuck] Schumer, and the Democrats have that in mind, I think that’s deeply regrettable.”

Johnson said he has spoken to House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries recently about government funding plans but did not go into specifics, according to Politico. 

House Republicans are also expected to work on farm policy, defense spending, and election integrity bills this year.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.