House Approves Budget Bill Preventing Shutdown, Leading to G.O.P. Rebellion
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The House of Representatives has passed a $1.2 trillion spending bill, aimed at funding the government through September and averting a partial shutdown. Passage came with a political cost for Speaker Mike Johnson, due to opposition from conservative Republicans who accused him of supporting legislation that would attack the American people. Despite this, the spending package includes provisions sought by Republicans, such as funding for 2,000 new Border Patrol agents and the inclusion of a clause to cut off aid to the main U.N. agency that provides assistance to Palestinians.
House Passes $1.2 Trillion Spending Bill Amid GOP Mutiny
The House passed a $1.2 trillion spending bill on Friday to fund the government through September and avert a partial shutdown. The decision led to a mutiny among members of the G.O.P. furious over the bipartisan legislation. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia called for a vote to oust Speaker Mike Johnson during the proceedings.
The bill was passed just ahead of the shutdown deadline, sparking a rush in the Senate to avoid a lapse in funding. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer urged senators to expedite the legislation, saying, “Let’s finish the job today.”
The extensive 1,012-page legislation, combining six spending bills, faced opposition from ultraconservatives who accused Speaker Mike Johnson of negotiating legislation that was an “attack on the American people.” Johnson’s decision cost him politically, as just 101 Republicans backed the bill.
Democrats supplied the majority of votes to pass the legislation. “Once again, it’s going to be House Democrats that carry necessary legislation for the American people to the finish line,” stated Representative Hakeem Jeffries of New York, the Democratic leader.
The spending package included several Republican provisions, such as funding for 2,000 new Border Patrol agents, additional detention beds run by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and a 25% increase in funding for technology at the southern border. However, conservatives criticized the legislation for its $1.2 trillion price tag and certain funding allocations, including $200 million for a new F.B.I. headquarters and funding for L.G.B.T.Q. centers.
Democrats secured a combined $1 billion in new funding for federal child care and education programs, and a $120 million increase for cancer research. “This legislation does not have everything either side may have wanted,” said Representative Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut, the top Democrat on the Appropriations Committee. “But I am satisfied that many of the extreme cuts and the policies proposed by House Republicans were rejected.”
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