House finishes read-through of FY 2011 spending bill

At 3:42 a.m. Thursday morning, the will of the House was to adjourn and get some sleep. 

The House had finished reading the entire FY 2011 spending bill by that late hour, as well as considered several relevant amendments to various titles.

It’s unclear whether the House will be able to complete work on the bill later on Thursday, but finishing the read-through was a good sign that this deadline might still be met.

The House did not take up an amendment from Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) to cut another $20 billion from the bill. Consideration of Jordan’s measure is expected Thursday, and could lead to renewed contentious debate among the more rested members.

On Wednesday night and into Thursday morning, the House delayed several roll-call votes until later — those votes are expected today. House Republicans successfully raised several points of order against several Democratic amendments during the process.

Near the end of the debate, Democrats proposed that the bill be changed so that it not immediately rescind $5 billion in unused stimulus funds. This amendment was rejected in a voice vote.

The debate lasted so long that at least one member was seen in the early Thursday hours wearing a different shirt, tie and jacket than the ones he was wearing at the beginning of the debate.

The House will reconvene at 9 a.m. Thursday.