OPEN FOR BUSINESS
$1.1T deal averts government shutdown; GOP claims victory despite concessions
WASHINGTON >> Erasing the threat of a disruptive government shutdown, the White House and top federal lawmakers endorsed a $1.1 trillion spending bill Monday to carry the nation through September, an agreement underscoring that Democrats retain considerable clout in Donald Trump’s turbulent presidency.
Negotiators released the 1,665-page bill after Republicans dropped numerous demands on the environment, Obama-era financial regulations and abortion in marathon sessions over the weekend. The bill is slated for a House vote on Wednesday, with a Senate vote ahead of a midnight Friday deadline.
“We thought we had the upper hand because a government shutdown would be on their shoulders, and we made that clear,” Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., said in an interview. “We knew that
if we didn’t push things too far, we could get a good deal that could make us happy and that’s what happened.”
Trump and the White House had made concessions last week when the president relented on his demand that the measure include a $1.4 billion down payment for his proposed wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. Trump repeatedly insisted during the election campaign that Mexico would pay for the wall, a
claim Mexican officials have vigorously rejected.
Congressional Republicans and Democrats, meanwhile, ignored Trump’s proposal to cut billions of dollars from domestic programs.
There also are no cuts in federal aid to Planned Parenthood or so-called “sanctuary cities.”
The White House and some top GOP allies declared victory anyway, citing billions of dollars more for the military. Trump won a $15 billion down payment on his request to strengthen the military, though that also fell short of what he
requested.
Vice President Mike Pence told CBS News on Monday that the administration “couldn’t be more pleased” and called the agreement it a “budget deal that’s a bipartisan win for the American people.”
House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., praised the bill, too, saying it “acts on President Trump’s commitment to rebuild our military for the 21st century and bolster our nation’s border security to protect our homeland.”
Longstanding conservative resistance to big spending bills requires the party
to seek Democratic votes for passage despite Republican majorities in both houses of Congress. That made the party that’s out of power a major player in the negotiations.
The talks also were spurred by a strong Republican desire to complete unfinished business well into the fiscal year and move on to health care repeal and tax overhaul, both of which are iffy propositions.
“If nothing else, it does allow the president to have at least one major success this week, which is great,” said White House Budget Director Mick Mulvaney.
“He’s going to sign his first substantive piece of legislation this week, and it’s going to make dramatic increases in funding to his priorities.”
Ryan’s office peppered reporters’ email inboxes with news releases cheering the bill and GOP-won provisions such as extending a private school vouchers program for students in Washington, D.C.’s troubled school system through 2019.
Democrats had sought additional spending for nondefense accounts to match Pentagon increases above spending caps set by a 2015 budget pact negotiated with former President Barack Obama. They were forced to settle for far less with domestic increases in the 1 percent range.
The measure funds the remainder of the 2017 budget year, through Sept. 30. Capitol Hill Republicans joined Democrats in supporting increases for popular domestic programs such as medical research at the National Institutes of Health, with Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., for instance, using his powerful post on the Appropriations Committee to take the lead on a 40 percent boost in research on Alzheimer’s disease.