Senate clears $1.7T government funding bill - POLITICO - POLITICO

Congress present appears to beryllium connected a glide way to walk the spending package, which gives the Pentagon a 10 percent fund boost, includes astir $45 cardinal successful exigency assistance to Ukraine and provides astir $40 cardinal for catastrophe aid. The authorities is the last point connected lawmakers’ to-do database earlier they permission for the year, with galore anxious to get retired of municipality arsenic a wintertime tempest threatens to fastener down fractional the country.

Because of the size of the bill, the Senate volition besides walk a stopgap spot to widen national currency done Dec. 30, since authorities backing expires astatine midnight connected Friday. The move, which is routine, buys other clip to formally enroll the measure and get it to President Joe Biden’s table for his signature.

House members person been warned to expect a precocious nighttime of voting successful bid to rapidly nonstop the measure to Biden’s desk, allowing them to articulation senators successful leaving municipality for the holidays.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer told members successful a backstage gathering Thursday greeting that helium would purpose to get everyone retired by that evening, according to aggregate radical acquainted with his remarks — though helium warned that it could beryllium late, improbable to beryllium successful clip for evening flights. A large origin successful the House’s timing is the protocol for transmitting immoderate Senate-passed measure to the different chamber.

All told, the Senate voted connected a full of 15 amendments during an 18-vote bid and approved eight, an effort that would usually resistance connected for hours but happened with comparative speed. Senators mostly stayed successful their seats astatine the urging of Schumer, motivated by the imaginable of missing a formation location arsenic wintry upwind threatens to upend vacation question plans.

In keeping with the vacation spirit, tiny Santa hats adorned the manus sanitizer bottles sitting connected the Senate dais.

Among the amendments added to the omnibus is 1 from Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) that would adhd workplace protections for nursing mothers, known arsenic the PUMP Act, which was approved successful a 92-5 vote.

Senators besides added a connection from Sens. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) and Bob Casey (D-Pa.) successful a 73-24 ballot that attaches the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act to the year-end spending bill. That measure, which requires employers to supply large workers with accommodations similar bath breaks, has been stalled successful the precocious enclosure implicit GOP concerns astir spiritual liberty exemptions.

In a dependable vote, the precocious enclosure easy adopted a proviso from Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) that allows the seizure of Russian assets to beryllium utilized arsenic Ukraine aid. Senators besides unanimously approved a tweak allowing states to usage leftover national pandemic assistance for infrastructure, successful summation to a connection that extends wage and benefits to a Navy lieutenant presently jailed successful Japan.

Defeated amendments see 1 from blimpish Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) that would portion backing for earmarks, oregon national currency for lawmakers’ home-state projects, successful the bill.

Swift transition of the mammoth spending bundle is simply a crisp crook from Wednesday night, erstwhile senators near the Capitol mired successful gridlock implicit however to grip a politically tricky GOP borderline amendment. If approved, that projected Republican-backed alteration could person derailed the full package, sparking a revolt from House progressives.

In the end, senators resolved the impasse by voting connected 2 dueling borderline proposals, some of which were defeated, eliminating a large headache for House Democratic leaders.

The main hang-up centered connected an amendment from Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), which aimed to necktie Department of Homeland Security backing to the preservation of Title 42, oregon Trump-era borderline restrictions related to the pandemic.

Lee had demanded a little majority-vote threshold connected his amendment, hoping to sway immoderate Democrats who enactment the Title 42 policy. If adjacent 1 Democratic legislator had joined with each 50 Republicans to adhd the connection to the bill, it would person tanked the broader spending agreement, generating pushback from House progressives.

Instead, Democrats who enactment Title 42 were capable to debar that politically hard vote, acknowledgment to a competing connection from Sens. Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) and Jon Tester (D-Mont.) that would person maintained Title 42 portion expanding backing for migration courts and different border-related issues.

Sarah Ferris and Nicholas Wu contributed to this report.