Agreement on spending bill to avert shutdown
WASHINGTON — Congressional negotiators reached an agreement late Sunday on a broad spending package to fund the government through the end of September, alleviating fears of a government shutdown later this week, several congressional aides said.
Congress is expected to
100 days coming to terms with the slow grind of government even in a Republican-dominated capital, and watching some of his promises —from repealing the nation’s health-care law to temporarily banning people from some Muslim nations — fizzle.
Last week, lawmakers sent the president a stopgap spending bill to keep the government open through Friday. Capitol Hill negotiators reported late Sunday night that they had reached a hard-won agreement on a $1 trillion-plus spending bill that would fund the day-today operations of virtually every federal agency through September.
The House and Senate have until Friday at midnight to pass the measure to avert a government shutdown.
The catchall spending bill would be the first major piece of legislation to advance during Trump’s short tenure in the White House. It denies Trump a win on his oft-promised wall along the U.S.-Mexico border but gives him a down payment on his request to strengthen the military.
It also rejects White House budget director Mick Mulvaney’s proposals to cut popular programs such as funding medical research and community development grants.
Most of the core decisions about agency budgets have been worked out, but unrelated policy issues — such as a Democratic request to help the cash-strapped government of Puerto Rico with its Medicaid burden — had been among the final holdups.
Democrats have denied Trump a big-picture win on obtaining an initial down payment for his oftpromised border wall with Mexico, while anti-abortion lawmakers didn’t even attempt to use the mustpass measure to try to cut off federal money for Planned Parenthood.
Details are closely held, but Trump and Capitol Hill defense hawks have procured a $15 billion infusion of cash for Pentagon readiness and won funding for other border security accounts, such as detention beds for people entering the country illegally.
Democrats praised a $2 billion funding increase for the National Institutes of Health — rejecting the steep cuts proposed by Trump — as well as additional funding to combat opioid abuse and maintain Pell Grants for summer school. A provision extending health care for 22,000 retired Appalachian coal miners and their families was on track to provide permanent health benefits, a priority of Senate Majority leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.
Democratic votes will be needed to pass the measure, so even though Republicans control both the White House and Congress, Democrats have been actively involved in the talks, which appear headed to produce a lowest-common-denominator measure that won’t look too much different from a deal that could have been struck on President Barack Obama’s watch last year.
Meanwhile, despite a renewed White House push, the House did not vote last week on a revised bill to repeal and replace the Affordable Health Care Act.
After the original effort to repeal the program and replace it failed to win enough support from conservatives and moderates, Republicans recast the bill. The latest version would let states escape a requirement under Obama’s 2010 law that insurers charge healthy and seriously ill customers the same rates. The overall legislation would cut the Medicaid program for the poor, eliminate fines for people who don’t buy insurance and provide generally skimpier subsidies. Critics have said the approach would reduce protections for people with pre-existing conditions.
But during an interview with “Face the Nation” on CBS that aired Sunday, Trump said the measure has a “clause that guarantees” that people with pre-existing conditions are covered.
Trump said: “Pre- existing conditions are in the bill. And I just watched another network than yours, and they were saying, ‘ Preexisting is not covered.’ Pre- existing conditions are in the bill. And I mandate it. I said, ‘ Has to be.’”
Trump acknowledged during the interview that the presidency is “a tough job. But I’ve had a lot of tough jobs. I’ve had things that were tougher, although I’ll let you know that better at the end of eight years. Perhaps eight years. Hopefully, eight years.”
The president will welcome Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to the White House this week. And he’ll head to New York City on Thursday where he’ll visit the USS Intrepid to mark the 75th anniversary of a World War II naval battle.
Trump also has placed a “warm” phone call to Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte, who has been widely criticized for a bloody antidrug crackdown, and invited him to visit the White House, both countries said.
In the Philippines, a presidential spokesman said Trump had expressed understanding of challenges facing Duterte, “especially on the matter of dangerous drugs.”
Human-rights groups have expressed deep concern over Duterte’s harsh methods against suspected drug users and drug dealers during his time in office. Human Rights Watch estimated this year that at least 7,000 people, an average of 30 a day, had been killed by death squads since Duterte became president.
On Sunday morning, Trump headed to Trump National Golf Club in Virginia. The White House did not disclose whether he was holding meetings or golfing.