Congress approves budget stopgap
Congress on Thursday night averted a government shutdown just one day ahead of deadline, sending a bill to keep federal agencies funded through mid-February to President Biden’s desk.
The Senate passed the short-term spending measure, 69-28, after uncertainty over whether leadership could garner the votes amid pushback from conservatives who called for language to defund the administration’s vaccine mandates.
The bill funds the government through Feb. 18 and provides an additional $7 billion for agencies assisting evacuees from Afghanistan.
The upper chamber held a vote on an amendment led by Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) that prohibited federal dollars being used to implement vaccine mandates. The amendment failed, 50-48.
While conservative hardliners threatened to derail the stopgap spending bill without the changes, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) rallied enough members of his conference to surpass the 60 votes needed to keep the federal lights on.
The House had passed the measure earlier in the evening in a 221-212 vote, with Rep. Adam Kinzinger (Ill.) being the sole GOP member to support the measure.
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said the short-term patch demonstrated “congressional irresponsibility,” with lawmakers unable to reach a final appropriations deal.
“This bill is a demonstration of the failure of 535 adults, elected by their fellow citizens, to act responsibly . . . This is a failure,” he said.