Senate passes bill to fund government, avert another shutdown
The Senate overwhelmingly passed a compromise bill on border security Thursday to fund the government past the Friday deadline and avert another shutdown.
The measure, which was approved by a 83 to 16 broad bipartisan vote, is expected to pass in the House Thursday night and be signed into law by President Trump, who the White House said will also declare a national emergency to secure funds to construct a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
"President Trump should sign this bill ASAP," Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York said before the vote.
The spending legislation to bolster security along the southwestern border was brokered by Republican and Democratic negotiators earlier in the week after hours of deliberations. The proposal, which would fund all seven remaining appropriations bills, includes $1.375 billion in funding for 55 miles of physical barriers along the border and a reduction in overall Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention beds from 49,057, the current number available, to 40,520.
The agreement has been denounced by the president's conservative allies in Congress and the media — including Fox News' Sean Hannity and Laura Ingraham — because it does not include his initial $5.7 billion demand for border wall funding.
