The Senate passed a funding package worth $1.2 trillion early Saturday morning, marking the end of multiple spending fights that plagued Congress for months.
Senators approved the hefty spending package containing the remaining six fiscal year 2024 appropriations bills by a vote of 74–24, despite opposition from Republicans who were frustrated with the limited time given for thoughtful review. The package was released early Thursday morning, meaning lawmakers had less than two days to read its 1,012 pages.
Some Republican senators were planning to delay the $1.2 trillion spending package due to the time crunch, with Senator Mike Lee (R., Utah) calling the process “utterly absurd.” Senator Rick Scott (R., Fla.) likewise said, “This is a crazy way to run the country.”
Much of the Republican opposition to the package came from fighting over the border amendments such as a modified Laken Riley Act, which would prevent illegal immigrants from gaining citizenship or legal status if they’re found to have committed burglary, theft, or shoplifting. Senator Ted Budd (R., N.C.) introduced the Laken Riley Act as an amendment after the House passed the border-related bill earlier this month. The legislation is awaiting a vote in the Senate.
Democrats were largely unwilling to agree to a vote on the border amendments, but a bipartisan deal was made shortly before midnight when Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.) announced an agreement.
“It’s been a very long and difficult day, but we have just reached an agreement to complete the job of funding the government,” Schumer said on the Senate floor. “It is good for the country that we have reached this bipartisan deal. It wasn’t easy, but tonight our persistence has been worth it.”
The eleventh-hour Senate vote came shortly after a brief partial government shutdown went into effect at midnight. The legislation now heads to President Joe Biden’s desk for his expected signature.
“Because obligations of federal funds are incurred and tracked on a daily basis, agencies will not shut down and may continue their normal operations,” the White House said.
As long as the Senate passed the six-figure package over the weekend, the effects of a partial government shutdown would have been very limited.
The House on Friday voted 286–134 to pass the latest appropriations measures, which included funding for the Departments of Defense, Homeland Security, Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, State, and the legislative branch.
During the House vote, Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene (R., Ga.) filed a motion to oust Speaker Mike Johnson (R., La.) but stopped short of immediately forcing a vote to remove him. She called her motion a “warning” to Johnson, who replaced then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R., Calif.) in October.
Greene said Johnson had betrayed his partisan colleagues for pushing the $1.2 trillion spending package through Congress to avoid a shutdown. She wanted the spending bill to be used as “leverage” for securing the border.
Still, Republicans negotiated several provisions to send additional resources to the border, including funding for 2,000 new Border Patrol agents and more ICE detention beds. The legislation would also increase funding for technology at the southern border by 25 percent.
Notably, it would also cut aid to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), a controversial agency that supports the relief and human development of Palestinian refugees, until March 25, 2025. The ban came amid recent reports that at least a dozen UNRWA staff members directly participated in the Hamas terrorist attacks against Israel on October 7.
Despite intra-party resistance, Johnson considered the package’s policy wins a victory for conservatives.
“House Republicans achieved conservative policy wins, rejected extreme Democrat proposals, and imposed substantial cuts while significantly strengthening national defense,” Johnson said. “The process was also an important step in breaking the omnibus muscle memory and represents the best achievable outcome in a divided government.”
Two weeks before, Congress passed the first half of the remaining appropriations bills. The $468 billion package, which Biden signed into law, included funds for the Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Justice, Veterans Affairs, Energy, Interior, Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and other federal programs.