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US Senate approves bill to avert government shutdown
WASHINGTON, Dec 20, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – The US Senate on Wednesday night
approved an emergency short-term spending bill that averts a looming
government shutdown, but excludes funds that President Donald Trump sought
for a US-Mexico border wall.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said the measure will fund normal
government operations at current levels through February 8 — bringing
Washington a step closer to avoiding a potentially crippling closure of some
federal offices over next week’s coming Christmas holiday.
The bill will need to pass the House of Representatives and be signed by
Trump before midnight Friday, when funding is set to expire for key agencies
like the Department of Homeland Security.
Republican and Democratic leaders earlier on Wednesday gave strong signals
that the stopgap, known as a continuing resolution, would pass Congress and
head to the president’s desk.
“It’s good that our Republican colleagues in the Senate finally realized
that they should not shut down the government over a wall that does not have
enough support to pass the House or Senate and is not supported by a majority
of the country,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said upon the bill
clearing the Senate.
White House aides told US media President Trump is inclined to sign the
measure.
But it is seen as a defeat for the president, who had argued strenuously
for $5 billion in new funding for a wall that he insists would check illegal
immigration.
BSS/AFP/FI/ 1015 hrs