The Senate passed a $460 billion spending bill to avoid a partial government shutdown ahead of Friday’s first funding deadline.
Lawmakers spent much of Friday considering motions related to a series of bills and debating the package after President Biden’s State of the Union address Thursday night.
The vote was 75-22, and the package was passed to Biden for his signature.
Former president’s speechwriters react to Biden’s speech
A bill that would provide funding to Agriculture, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Department of Justice, the Department of Commerce, the Department of Energy and Water Development, the Department of the Interior, and the Department of Transportation and Housing for the remainder of fiscal year 2024 was finally approved by senators. It will be submitted to the President. Biden’s desk being signed.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D.Y.) speaks to reporters at the Capitol on Wednesday, March 6, 2024 in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
But the Senate passed the midnight shutdown deadline by just a few hours, with a large faction of mostly Republicans objecting to every step of the Senate process.
A motion to shut down the bill to limit consideration requires a 60-vote threshold in the chamber, and the chamber voted 63-35, narrowly avoiding a potential filibuster. Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) said on the floor that many Republicans chose not to shut down the bill, not because they wanted to see it shut down, but because they proposed several amendments, particularly those related to immigration. He pointed out that this was because the vote was rejected. .
Sen. Rand Paul asks Fauci to disclose drug royalties to NIH scientists
The Senate also struggled to establish a time agreement to quickly move the bill through the floor.
Senator Rand Paul speaks during a coronavirus response hearing at the Capitol on June 16, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Joe Radle)
Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), vice chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, issued a “warning” to fellow Republicans who are hesitant to support the bill ahead of the vote. “If we don’t act at midnight tonight, there will be a partial government shutdown,” he said in his floor remarks. “It would impact the Department of Agriculture. It would hurt the work of the Food and Drug Administration. It would prevent military construction projects from moving forward.”
House passes $460 billion government funding bill over pushback from hard-line Republicans
The package first passed the House on Wednesday in a vote of 339-85.
Several Republican senators expressed skepticism before the vote, pointing to the number of items included.
Many Republican lawmakers with these concerns joined a resolution condemning the use of earmarks in appropriations. Sens. Rick Scott (R-Fla.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), and Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) on Wednesday. He held a press conference and denounced the current process as unfair. Allows debate on a variety of objectives by individual legislators.
Sen. Mike Lee speaks during a markup hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday, November 30, 2023. (Bill Clark)
Sotugest, who became pregnant after being raped, approves of abortion: “I’m one of those 1 percent”
“The minibus spending bill includes more than 6,600 projects that will cost taxpayers $12 billion,” Scott said in a statement. “This is clearly not meant to fund the government, but to fund projects for politicians like Chuck Schumer.”
Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut announced Wednesday that he would vote against the bill for other reasons. “Buried in the spending bill this week is a scary new gun control provision that would significantly rollback firearms background checks. You need to know about this. This is bad enough, so I’m “I will vote against the entire bill,” he said. In a statement.
House Republicans sharpen knives ahead of Biden’s State of the Union address, say they expect ‘more gaslighting’
The second funding deadline is March 22, and the spending bill is still being negotiated for consideration. Legislation to fund the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Defense would be included in the second round of spending measures.
Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut announced Wednesday that he would vote against the bill. (Valerie Plesch/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Last month’s week-long stopgap funding measure was the fourth of its kind since the Sept. 30 deadline for the first spending bill to fund the government this year.
Part of the justification among House Republicans for securing ex-California Rep. Kevin McCarthy’s removal from the speakership was his failure to keep promises such as passing a spending bill by the rules. . But newly sworn-in House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) is struggling to pass funding legislation without quick fixes, especially as the Republican majority shrinks.
