House approves spending bill to prevent government shutdown



[ad_1]

The bill then goes to the office of President Donald Trump for his signature. While the president has given mixed signals as to whether he would sign the bill – because of his lack of money for a border wall – Republicans have expressed confidence this week he would sign the measure.

Trump himself said earlier Wednesday that he would continue to run the government.

"We will keep the government open," Trump said after a meeting with his Japanese counterpart in New York.

Trump must sign it before midnight Sunday to prevent a stop. The deadline marks the end of the exercise.

The bill includes a continuing resolution that will fund the remaining unfunded portions of the government until December 7.

Republicans and Democrats welcome the bill as a success because Congress has long struggled to pass legislation like this in time and before the next fiscal year.

The package – which includes several expense invoices in what is called a "minibus" – was overwhelmingly approved by the Senate last week, but there is still some uncertainty as to whether the president will sign it .

But in private and in public, the Republicans say they are sure he will sign in the end.

Congressional vote highlights all the forces against (and some supporting) the government's closure

House Speaker Paul Ryan said on Wednesday that Trump would not veto the bill and said the president told him he would sign it.

"Yes, I'm sure he'll sign it," Ryan told reporters at a news conference where he asked if he had assurances from the president on the issue.

A Bureau of Management and Budget official told CNN that the OMB had organized an appeal with all federal agencies earlier this week about how these agencies would work in the context of a possible government shutdown. The call is part of the protocol required one week before the credits expire, whether or not a closure is expected.

"I do not think anyone in the country has an appetite for closure," said Rep. Chuck Fleischmann, Tennessee Republican on the credit committee. Describing Trump as "realistic and pragmatic", Fleischmann said Trump realized that "what we have achieved this year has been infinitely better than we have done in the past".

The bill finances the military by the deadline of 30 September for the first time in years, as well as the departments of labor, education and health and social services. In response to Hurricane Florence, lawmakers also added more than $ 7 billion in disaster relief. This comes to add to another minibus signed by the president last week.

However, some areas of the government will not receive funding in time for the Sunday deadline. To prevent a closure, Congress has attached a short-term spending measure, called a permanent resolution, that will finance these departments until December 7.

Much to the chagrin of the president, the current minibus does not include money for his signature campaign promise of a border wall. The issue is essentially unresolved for lawmakers before the December deadline, avoiding a controversial vote after the November elections.

Republican Republican Mark Meadows Wednesday criticized the GOP's strategy of pushing the fight beyond the wall.

"At some point, we have to maintain and keep our campaign promises and at this point I do not see the benefits of this strategy," he told reporters.

But the North Carolina Republican has nevertheless said he did not expect a closure in advance as Congress moves forward in its current plan.

Meadows said that based on the conversations he had with the administration, he knew that the president "does not want closure" and said he would put the likelihood of a closure on "within 5 % ".

Trump, speaking in Montana earlier this month about Republican leaders in Congress, said "they do not want to do anything to upset the basket of apples".

"If it's okay?" He continued. "I'll shut the government down to border security, in a moment."

But he went on to add that "most likely … will not do it," noting that he has a commitment from Republicans to respond to it "immediately after the elections".

The main Republicans in Congress have made it clear to the president that the political repercussions of a closure, however small, would be potentially devastating a little more than a month before the mid-term elections.

Just a few days ago, Trump was ringing again in a tweet, demanding to know where the money for a border wall lies in what he called this "ridiculous" bill. "REPUBLICANS MUST FINALLY TOUCH!"
Add to the uncertainty a threat of veto Trump has made on the last major bill to prevent the closure of the government. Despite his frustration, he signed the bill a few hours later.

When asked if the president will sign this week, Republicans are eager to note that the package contains funds for the Ministry of Defense, which is consistent with Trump's constant call to rebuild the 'army.

Repeating Mac Thornberry, a Texas Republican and chairman of the Armed Services Committee of the House, said Tuesday that signing the bill would be the "biggest step" to achieve that goal, and that achievement is part of that. . "

"I want his signature on this dotted line," he added.

Once approved by the House on Wednesday, as planned, the bill is expected to reach the White House on Thursday, which promises to be a busy day. A follow-up hearing is scheduled with Trump Supreme Court candidate Brett Kavanaugh and Christine Blasey Ford, the woman who accuses Kavanaugh of sexual assault in the 1980s when they were both teenagers (Kavanaugh denied the allegations).
Also on Thursday, Trump is expected to meet with Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, whose future looks shaky after he has proposed to resign.

The President will have until Sunday evening to sign the parcel. But with House GOP leaders planning to leave the city until the end of the election, the president will focus on signing the bill by Friday.

CNN's Rene Marsh contributed to this report.

[ad_2]
Source link