Entering the pre-election campaign with blocked federal institutions due to an unadopted budget was not a risk that some Republicans in the House wanted to take.
The passage of the $1.2 trillion bill in the wee hours in the House ended the months-long saga of federal government funding, which Republicans wanted to use to put an unbearable burden on the backs of Democrats in an election year.
The awareness that blocking the functioning of federal institutions and agencies puts the entire country in a state of emergency has prevailed at the last moment. The GOP partisan appetites have been set aside (at least among its representatives).
A compromise will provide both parties with good ammunition to continue the campaign. Democrats will brag about their tenacity and determination to secure the money and carry out most of their policies.
Getting out of the federal government blockade zone will be an incentive for the Democrats to talk about victory after a months-long struggle in which the functioning of state systems was at stake. And winning when elections are near always sounds good.
The image of the victim
On the other hand, after the approved budget, the Republicans will have plenty of patriotic arguments in their hands that they did not allow the state blockade even though the Democratic administration still intends to spend beyond measure.
We can already guess the performances of the Republican candidates (many also up for re-election in the US Congress) emphasising their role in saving the country, at the same time as criticising the wastefulness of the Democratic administration.
This will be a "sacrifice" for a higher cause, which Republicans would capitalise on in their campaigns.
One of the principal consequences of the final adoption of the spending bill will be a split within the Republican conference
One of the principal consequences of the final adoption of the spending bill will be a split within the Republican conference, as radical GOP representatives have experienced the bipartisan compromise as a betrayal by their party colleagues.
"When it came down to it, they just surrendered," said Ralph Norman, Republican Representative, effectively accusing his moderate colleagues of betrayal and causing divisions.
Conservatives will have a hard time admitting defeat
For the ultra-conservatives gathered in the Freedom Caucus in the House, any compromise on the budget was unacceptable, even at the cost of stopping the funding of public services and the payment of social benefits.
However, the attempt to replace the House Speaker Mike Johnson was also a sloppy attempt by ultra-conservatives to stop a bipartisan compromise on the spending bill at the last minute.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, the initiator of replacing Johnson, stopped halfway through by filing a motion to remove Johnson but did not ask for voting. She said that her move was a "warning" to the speaker.
The split between the 2 Republican factions remained deep after passing the spending bill, and the losing ultra-conservative faction will seek revenge.
Conservatives have often liked demonstrating dominance and toughness in the House, where the GOP has a narrow majority. For example, last September, they pressured Speaker Kevin McCarthy to launch a formal impeachment inquiry against US President Joe Biden, warning him that they brought him to that position and could easily remove him.
The pendulum swung the other way, at a crucial moment for the further course of the campaign for the election of representatives in the House and a third of the US senators next November
This time, the pendulum swung the other way, perhaps at a crucial moment for the further course of the campaign for the election of representatives in the House and a third of the US senators next November. Perhaps even for the presidential campaign.
The bipartisan compromise, which was hard-won and with many mutual concessions, where neither side came away unscathed, is a crucial event for the US in the past year and this year.
But the price both sides have paid now, they will try to make up in the period leading up to the November elections.
Ukrainian aid package in question
One of the areas for bargaining remains the legislation on the military package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, which, after its adoption in the Senate, is still waiting for the decision of the House.
Out of a total of $95 billion, slightly more than $60 billion has been designated for Kyiv, which would probably be a turning point for Ukrainian defence against Russian aggression.
The tension among GOP representatives does not provide Kyiv much hope to expect a rapid and positive resolution from the US Congress
However, after expressing a compromise in passing the $1.2 trillion budget for the operation of federal services, Republicans in the House now have even more room to tighten up on aid to Ukraine.
Mike Johnson gave some hope that after the budget is passed, Congress should pay attention to other funding bills, including the one on military aid that has been waiting for Republican approval for a long time.
However, the tension among GOP representatives does not provide Kyiv much hope to expect a rapid and positive resolution from the US Congress.
Political calculations about the benefit or harm they might have during the campaign are far more significant to everyone on Capitol Hill at this point than their foreign policy concerns.
