By Nathan Hurst, CQ Staff

Another effort by House Republican leaders to pass a short-term extension of surface transportation programs was thwarted Tuesday, as members of both parties continue to fight for leverage on policy and funding issues.

The setback — the second in as many days — increases the stakes for Speaker John A. Boehner, who has made a long-term overhaul of highway and transit programs linked to oil and gas exploration revenue a top priority.

Republicans pushed for a House vote on a 60-day extension (HR 4239) under expedited procedures. But passage with the needed two-thirds majority would have required Democratic votes. When the minority voiced strong objection to any short-term approach, GOP leaders sidelined the measure.

Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va., put a placeholder on Wednesday’s floor schedule for another short-term measure, but it remained unclear what the Republican leadership’s next move would be. The Rules Committee approved by a voice vote a rule on an unrelated bill that would also allow an extension to be brought up under suspension of the rules on Thursday.

Boehner, R-Ohio, and his leadership team appear to have no clear path to passing the Speaker’s ambitious overhaul of transportation projects and are struggling to win support for a short-term extension before the current one (PL 112-30) expires March 31.

Democrats showed no signs of blinking, repeating calls for the House to vote on that chamber’s version (HR 14) of the Senate’s two-year, $109 billion surface transportation bill (S 1813), which passed with bipartisan support earlier this month.

Without an agreement between House and Senate leaders, Democrats are reluctant to vote for a short-term bill that would give House Republicans more time to complete work on their own five-year, $260 billion proposal (HR 7) that derailed in mid-February.

Further complicating the situation for Republicans, however, are conservatives in their own conference, who are facing increased pressure from outside groups, such as the conservative Heritage Action for America, which earlier this week pressed them to turn over responsibility for maintaining the nation’s infrastructure to each state, essentially ending the federal government’s role in building and maintaining a federal highway system.

Michael Needham, the group’s chief executive, is no fan of a short-term extension but said if one must be passed, “Congress should use the brief reprieve to do transportation policy right.”

And from the moderate side of the Republican ranks, a small group — Robert Dold and Judy Biggert of Illinois and Charles Bass of New Hampshire — signed on to a bipartisan letter circulated by Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore., this week demanding a vote on the Senate-passed bill. House Democratic aides said late Tuesday they were confident that more support from Republicans would materialize.

Michael Steel, a Boehner spokesman, said Democrats were standing in the way. “There is only one reason this bill will not be voted on tonight: House Democrats are playing political games with our nation’s economy,” he said.

Confusion Over Agreements

House Republicans are reaching out to Democrats in an effort to reach an agreement that would allow a vote on a short-term extension Wednesday, a senior Republican aide said, adding that the vote could happen Thursday.