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GOP House leadership negotiated what appears to be a lousy continuing resolution with the Democrats. It is 1,500 pages long and dropped with barely enough time for legislators to review it, which should alone be reason to vote No. What is the worst that could happen? A “government shutdown,” in which the government unfortunately does not shut down. I would welcome that outcome.

Enter DOGE, in the form of Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy. Musk has urged Congressmen to vote No, and said on Twitter that anyone who votes for this resolution should not be re-elected in 2026. Ramaswamy read the bill in its entirety and posted this–in my opinion–highly intelligent commentary:

The continuing resolution increases spending rather than continuing existing spending, and includes numerous policy provisions that should be left to the next Congress.

This story could have a happy ending. Politico reports that Musk and Ramaswamy are being heard, and Speaker Mike Johnson is now considering a Plan B:

The Louisiana Republican is discussing dropping $100 billion in disaster aid plus other attachments and instead passing a “clean CR” — then dealing with the other issues in the new year, according to two Republicans with knowledge of the conversations.

I don’t understand why Republicans would even consider passing anything other than a “clean” CR. (I’m not sure they should do continuing resolutions at all, but that is another question.) Politico writes:

Musk’s decision to weigh in has frustrated some Republicans who have long viewed him as a potential ally in their charge to cut spending, something virtually all Republicans want to do. The GOP doesn’t control all the levers of power until next year and is, therefore, limited in its ability to write spending bills that the party favors. Some Republicans are already privately grumbling that Musk — while clearly a successful businessman — doesn’t understand the ways of Washington, where spending bills must be bipartisan.

No, they don’t have to be bipartisan. The House can simply pass a bill that continues spending at present levels for a few months, with no other provisions. If the Democrats who still control the Senate for the next month want to hold out for unrelated concessions, they can decline to pass the bill. Then the government will “shut down.” Who cares? Let the government stay “shut down” until Senate Democrats relent, or the new Congress assembles. Democrats will mind that more than Republicans will.

It looks to me as if Musk and Ramaswamy are bringing a long-needed seriousness to the GOP’s alleged effort to cut spending.