Several progressive Democrats threatened to vote against it, and the House went into recess as leadership tried to resolve it. House Democratic leaders appear to have convinced a progressive Democrat — Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts — to vote “present” in order to secure enough votes to pass the long-running police funding package sought by vulnerable members, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. of the subject. Several other progressive Democrats plan to vote no, so the vote will be close but expected to pass. The House cleared a procedural hurdle Thursday afternoon to begin debating the package of bills. The vote was extremely close, however, in a sign of how tight the voting math is for Democrats on the legislation. Pressley voted present on the procedural vote to begin debate on the bills. There were some tense moments on the House floor as Democrats tried to figure out how to get the votes needed to pass the police bills on a procedural vote. Progressive Rep. Ilhan Omar, who negotiated the bills, was locked in a nail-biting row with House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy tried to suspend the vote and said there was a member who was three minutes away who could vote. When the bills passed, Democrats on the floor cheered.
How the vote was tallied
Supporters of the package announced Wednesday that they would reach an agreement to approve the package this week after months of negotiations. Hoyer told reporters a vote would be scheduled for Thursday, and Rep. Joyce Beatty, chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus, said the move comes after a compromise was reached on language ensuring police accountability and the withdrawal of another more controversial bill from the debates. Congressional Progressive Caucus Chairwoman Pramila Jayapal of Washington state and Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, who serves as the caucus’ whip, issued a statement applauding the deal on Wednesday. The bill is largely a messaging bill entering the midterms, as moderate Democratic members of the House have sought to shield themselves from political attacks that they are anti-police. CNN reported earlier this week how dozens of the party’s most vulnerable members tried to defuse those attacks through a series of pro-police ads and local law enforcement events. This story and headline have been updated with additional developments on Thursday. CNN’s Daniella Diaz and Kristin Wilson contributed to this report.
