Dozens of major conservative activist leaders and organizers are urging Republicans in Congress to support a clean continuing resolution (CR) to avert a government shutdown in a memo organized by the Conservative Action Project.
“Conservatives support President Trump’s efforts to streamline and rebuild a federal government that works for the American people. As the March 14 funding deadline approaches, we support President Trump in his efforts to pass a Continuing Resolution to September 30th and urge all conservatives in Congress to do the same,” said the memo set for release on Friday, a draft of which was obtained by The Hill.
The more than 70 signatories include J. Kenneth Blackwell, chair of the Conservative Action Project; former Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.), chair of the Conservative Partnership Institute; David McIntosh, president of Club for Growth; Penny Nance, president of Concerned Women for America; David Bossie, president of Citizens United; Eric Teetsel, president of Center for Renewing America; and Morton Blackwell, president of the Leadership Institute.
The letter comes as House Republican leaders prepare a clean CR until the end of the fiscal year on Sept. 30 to avert a shutdown after a March 14 funding deadline. President Trump has backed the plan.
But Democrats have expressed opposition to a clean CR that lasts the entirety of the fiscal year, complicating the path in the Senate, where Democratic support is needed to meet the 60-vote threshold to advance the legislation.
And if Democrats do not support the bill in the House, it will need near-unanimous support from Republicans to pass in the razor-thin GOP majority — a feat that could be tough given historical opposition to stopgaps from hardline conservatives.
Asked on Thursday if Democrats’ votes would be needed to pass the CR, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) “I believe we’ll pass it along party lines, but I think every Democrat should vote for the CR.”
Some hardliners, particularly in the House Freedom Caucus, have shifted to signal openness to a clean CR, arguing that keeping the government open will allow the administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to continue its work taking a sledgehammer to the federal bureaucracy.
The letter from the conservative leaders echoed that argument.
“The opening days of the Trump administration have resulted in more efforts to cut wasteful spending and restrain an unfettered bureaucracy than many of us have seen in our lifetimes. It is critical that any funding deal not limit the ability of President Trump to continue this work,” the memo read.
A group of conservatives met with Trump at the White House on Wednesday, though not all of them have said they will support the measure, saying they need to see the final details.
“We echo these Members of Congress in calling for a deal that keeps the government focused on President Trump’s priorities of transparency, accountability, and on activities that actually work for the American people,” the memo said. “The intransigence of Democrats has made clear that a clean Continuing Resolution to the end of the fiscal year – with only the necessary anomalies to support conservative priorities – is the clearest path toward that goal. We urge all conservatives to support the President in these efforts.”
The letter is just the latest sign of outside conservative leaders coalescing behind a clean CR plan. Heritage Action President Kevin Roberts and Executive Vice President Ryan Walker wrote in support of a clean CR on Thursday in a Fox News op-ed.
