(CNN) As Congress raced toward another spending deadline, most were watching Sen. Rand Paul's objections to a proposed spending plan. But another Republican was creating more headaches for GOP leaders: Sen. James Risch of Idaho.

While the government spending bill eventually passed in the early hours of Friday morning, the drama started Thursday afternoon, when Risch approached Senate Republican leadership visibly angered about a provision in the spending bill -- the re-naming of White Clouds Wilderness preserve in Idaho.

The spending bill, which many consider the last major piece of legislation of the year and included plenty of legislation beyond funding the government, had a provision from Idaho GOP Rep. Mike Simpson re-naming the preserve the "Cecil D. Andrus-White Clouds Wilderness" preserve, after the former Democratic Idaho governor and Interior secretary under President Jimmy Carter.

As to what, in an old political rivalry, could've led to such a visceral response by Risch, aides in both parties were still trying to figure out what had occurred. At one point, a 2008 profile of Risch's political rise began circulating that recounted Risch's time as the majority leader in the Idaho state senate when Andrus, who died last year, was governor. The Idaho Statesman profile noted Risch "clashed with Democratic Gov. Cecil Andrus, particularly over education funding in the 1980s."

CNN has reached out to Risch's office for comment and has not yet received a response. When approached by reporters on Capitol Hill, Risch repeatedly refused to respond to questions about holding up the vote.

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