The House of Representatives approved a two-week continuing resolution today by a bipartisan vote of 335 to 91. If approved by the Senate, the continuing resolution gives members of Congress more time to strike a deal on spending during the remainder of the 2011 fiscal year. The previous spending resolution is set to expire on March 4, and leaders in both parties have said they are not seeking a shutdown of the federal government. The roll call shows that Steve King (IA-05) was one of only six House Republicans to vote against the continuing resolution. Tom Latham (IA-04) was among 231 Republicans who voted in favor. Democrats Bruce Braley (IA-01), Dave Loebsack (IA-02), Leonard Boswell (IA-03) were all among the 104 House Democrats who voted for the continuing resolution. The 85 Democrats who voted no included representatives from all wings of the party, but primarily members of the Progressive caucus, Congressional Black Caucus or Hispanic Caucus.

Pete Kasperowicz reports for The Hill,

More Democrats voted for the measure, which would reduce spending by $4 billion over the next two weeks, than against it, despite criticism of the GOP proposal ahead of the vote by Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), the Democratic leader and former Speaker.

Democratic leaders were divided. Pelosi voted no, but House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) voted for it. Democratic leaders urged their members to vote against the rule for the bill, but did not urge their members to vote against the spending measure itself.

I don’t have details on the $4 billion in cuts, but according to Raven Clabough, “Many of the cuts are from programs that President Obama has called for eliminating and the rest of the savings comes from ending the practice of earmarks.”

Before the final vote today,

the House voted on an amendment proposed by Representative William Keating that would eliminate taxpayer-funded subsidies to oil companies, a measure that failed by a vote of 176 to 249.

The roll call shows that vote went primarily along party lines. All House Republicans present (including Latham and King) voted against ending subsidies to oil companies. Boswell, Loebsack and Braley were among the 176 Democrats who voted to save money by cutting those subsidies.

UPDATE: As of Tuesday evening, only Braley’s office had released comments on today’s House votes. I’ve posted them after the jump. Like other recent statements by Braley, they emphasize the need to reduce the federal deficit.

SECOND UPDATE: King posted on his Twitter feed, “I will vote “NO” on the two week CR because some of ObamaCare is funded by it and the Pence amendment to block Planned Parenthood is not in.” Representative Michele Bachmann, a close ally of King who is considering running for president, voted against the continuing resolution for the same reasons.

March 1, 2011:

Braley Works to Avoid Government Shutdown

Washington, DC – Today, Congressman Bruce Braley (IA-01) joined a bipartisan effort to avoid a government shutdown. After voting to support a temporary spending bill that incorporates cuts from both parties, Rep. Braley released the following statement:

“These are tough times and this measure includes some tough cuts,” said Rep. Braley. “But without this bill, we would be facing a government shutdown at the end of this week. I promised to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to avoid a shutdown, and this is the first step. This measure is temporary – but it’s essential to ensure that our veterans don’t get denied care, that seniors continue to receive their Social Security checks and that crucial programs all over Iowa and the country are not disrupted by a shutdown.”

March 1, 2011:

Braley Works to End Tax Breaks for Big Oil Companies

Fights to create Iowa jobs, energize renewable fuels industry

Washington, DC – Today, Congressman Bruce Braley (IA-01) introduced a bill to end tax breaks for big oil companies. The Clean Energy Jobs Act will use the savings from these tax breaks to create jobs in Iowa, boost the renewable fuels industry and pay down the national deficit. Ending oil industry tax breaks will save about $43 billion over the next ten years.

“Big oil companies are making record profits and at the same time, they’re collecting tax breaks from the government,” said Rep. Braley. “If we end just a few of these tax breaks, we can create good-paying jobs in Iowa and still have funds left over to reduce our national deficit by billions.”

The Clean Energy Jobs bill repeals oil industry tax breaks and extends ethanol and biodiesel tax credits through 2016. The current tax breaks for these renewable fuels expire at the end of 2011.

“For years, oil companies have raised prices at the pump, made Americans pay for their record profits and threatened American security by making us more dependent on foreign oil,” said Rep. Braley. “But instead of investing in renewable fuels, Republicans are funneling taxpayer dollars right back into the pockets of big oil. This bill is a chance for Congress to break that cycle and do something responsible for our nation, while also creating good jobs in Iowa.”