The US Congress passes funding legislation to avoid a government shutdown
Agencies – Washington:
The US Congress passed a bill to extend government funding in a move aimed at avoiding a government shutdown before the holiday season.
The Democratic-controlled Senate approved, by a majority of 85 votes to 11, a bill to continue funding the government, and the government did not resort to lockdown measures in the meantime.
The bill will now be sent to the White House, where President Joe Biden is expected to sign it into law.
The funding package had previously been approved by the Republican-controlled House of Representatives with bipartisan support.
The last-minute vote concluded a hectic week that saw President-elect Donald Trump and his billionaire ally Elon Musk obstruct an initial two-party agreement, causing chaos in Congress.
The final version removed points supported by Democrats, who accused Republicans of surrendering to pressure from the unelected billionaire who lacks experience in running the state.
Congress did not yield to Trump’s request to raise the debt ceiling before he took office on January 20.
The federal government spent nearly $6.2 trillion last year and has debt exceeding $36 trillion, and Congress will need to act to allow more borrowing by the middle of next year.
The legislation extends government funding until March 14, provides $100 billion to disaster-hit states and $10 billion to farmers, and extends agricultural and food aid programs that are scheduled to expire at the end of the year.
Some Republicans opposed the package because it did not reduce spending. House Speaker Mike Johnson said that the party will have greater influence next year, with it enjoying a majority in both houses of Congress, as well as Trump assuming the presidency.
“This was a necessary step to bridge the gap, so that we could, at that moment, put our fingerprints on the final decisions on spending,” he told reporters after the House of Representatives vote. He added that Trump supported the package.
A government shutdown would have disrupted everything from law enforcement to closing national parks and suspending the pay of millions of federal employees.
A travel industry trade association warned that the closure would have cost airlines, hotels and others $1 billion per week, and would have caused widespread disruption during the busy holiday season.
Authorities have warned that travelers may have to wait in long lines at airports.
The package resembles a bipartisan plan that was abandoned last week after a barrage of online criticism from Trump and Musk, who said it contained too many unrelated provisions such as pay increases for lawmakers. Republicans deleted most of these elements from the bill, including a provision limiting investments in China that Democrats said could conflict with Musk’s interests. “It is clear that he does not want to answer questions about the extent of his plans to expand his business in China and the number of American technologies that he plans to sell,” said Democratic Representative in the House of Representatives Rosa DeLauro. Trump assigned Musk, the richest person in the world, to head a task force to reduce the budget, but he will not hold an official position in the US administration.
