Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
GOP Unveils $1.4T Spending Bill Amid Post-Election Turmoil
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 4 years ago on
November 10, 2020

Share

WASHINGTON — Republicans controlling the Senate unveiled a government-wide, $1.4 trillion spending bill on Tuesday, a largely bipartisan measure that faces uncertain odds during this period of post-election tumult in Washington.

The GOP-drafted measure contains funding for President Donald Trump’s border wall and other provisions opposed by Democrats, but top leaders in both parties want to try to mount a drive to enact the unfinished spending bills — which, along with a separate COVID-19 relief effort and annual defense policy bill, represent the bulk of Capitol Hill’s unfinished business for the year.

Success depends on getting the signature of Trump, however, whose unpredictability and toxic relationships with Democrats threaten to doom the effort. The recent history of lame-duck sessions conducted as the White House is turning over has been that unfinished spending bills get kicked into the next year, with existing funding simply left on auto-pilot.

“I’ve had this argument before and so far I’ve lost. I argued 12 years ago, the Obama transition, that the best thing you could do to help the new president was to get this year’s work done, and we didn’t get it done,” said Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo. “Four years ago I argued that … and we didn’t get it done.”

At issue is the roughly one-third of the federal budget that is written annually by Congress under a time-tested bipartisan process. The overall spending amount has been set in law by last year’s bipartisan budget mini-deal, so any delay into next year won’t likely result in more money for the Biden administration. Current funding expires Dec. 12.

The 12 spending measures, released by Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Richard Shelby, R-Ala., have been stalled for months, trapped by fights over COVID relief and potential battles over police reform issues. But he has the backing of top panel Democrat Patrick Leahy of Vermont, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer of New York to at least pursue the effort. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., herself a long-ago veteran of the Appropriations Committee, also would like to wrap up the unfinished business.

Large Swaths of the Measure Are Indeed Bipartisan

“By and large, these bills are the product of bipartisan cooperation among members of the committee,” Shelby said in a statement. “Time after time, we have demonstrated our willingness to work together and get the job done. We have before us the opportunity to deliver for the American people once again.”

But Leahy carefully avoided endorsing the measure outright and instead criticized the legislation for ignoring COVID-19 relief, shortchanging safety net programs and the environment, and wasting money on unused detention beds for immigrants entering the country illegally.

Large swaths of the measure are indeed bipartisan, including a $696 billion defense budget that adds 96 F-35 fighters to the Pentagon’s ranks, funds nine Navy ships, and provides $69 billion for overseas military operations. It adopts $2 billion for 82 miles of border wall, certain to be fought by Democrats, along with $8.8 billion for Immigration and Customs Enforcement that Democrats charge isn’t needed because there are fewer apprehensions of illegal border-crossers.

NASA, health research, and veterans’ programs all would be rewarded with healthy increases, while foreign aid and education programs would get smaller increases.

If the catch-all bill is to advance it would have to contain COVID relief such as funding to help schools reopen, vaccinate the country, help the jobless, and boost the economy.

“This country is headed for a deadly winter and it is long past time for us to provide the resources the country needs to get this virus under control and our economy back open,” Leahy said in a statement. “These bills do not provide any such relief. It is imperative that we do what is necessary to stop this pandemic from spreading.”

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

Jeffrey Sachs Warns of Looming US War With Iran

DON'T MISS

Cat House on the Kings Urgently Needs You to Donate Dollars and Adopt Your New Best Friend

DON'T MISS

The Surprising Sexual Politics of Nicole Kidman’s Kinky ‘Babygirl’

DON'T MISS

Why It’s Hard to Control What Gets Taught in Public Schools

DON'T MISS

FDA Approves Weight-Loss Drug to Treat Obstructive Sleep Apnea

DON'T MISS

In a Calendar Rarity, Hanukkah Starts This Year on Christmas Day

DON'T MISS

A Look at the $100 Billion in Disaster Relief in the Government Spending Bill

DON'T MISS

It’s Eggnog Season. The Boozy Beverage Dates Back to Medieval England but Remains a Holiday Hit

DON'T MISS

9-Year-Old Among 5 Killed in Christmas Market Attack in Germany

DON'T MISS

Biden Signs Bill That Averts Government Shutdown, and Brings a Close to Days of Washington Upheaval

UP NEXT

A Look at the $100 Billion in Disaster Relief in the Government Spending Bill

UP NEXT

US Deportations Surge to Highest Level in a Decade Before Trump Takes Office

UP NEXT

White House Pushes to Find American Journalist Abducted in Syria

UP NEXT

Liberal Donors Plot to Overturn Republican House Majority in 2026

UP NEXT

The ‘Murder Hornet’ Has Been Eradicated From US, Officials Say

UP NEXT

Supreme Court Will Hear Arguments Over the Law That Could Ban TikTok

UP NEXT

Trump’s Picks for Top Health Jobs Not Just Team of Rivals but ‘Team of Opponents’

UP NEXT

Most US Teens Are Abstaining From Drinking, Smoking and Marijuana, Survey Says

UP NEXT

Mystery Drone Sightings Continue in New Jersey and Across the US. Here’s What We Know

UP NEXT

Drone Sightings Lead to Airspace Shutdown at Ohio Military Base, Arrests Near Boston Airport

Why It’s Hard to Control What Gets Taught in Public Schools

13 hours ago

FDA Approves Weight-Loss Drug to Treat Obstructive Sleep Apnea

13 hours ago

In a Calendar Rarity, Hanukkah Starts This Year on Christmas Day

14 hours ago

A Look at the $100 Billion in Disaster Relief in the Government Spending Bill

14 hours ago

It’s Eggnog Season. The Boozy Beverage Dates Back to Medieval England but Remains a Holiday Hit

14 hours ago

9-Year-Old Among 5 Killed in Christmas Market Attack in Germany

14 hours ago

Biden Signs Bill That Averts Government Shutdown, and Brings a Close to Days of Washington Upheaval

14 hours ago

This French Bulldog Is So Fetch: Meet Toaster Strudel

16 hours ago

The Fed Expects to Cut Rates More Slowly in 2025. What That Could Mean for Mortgages, Debt and More

19 hours ago

New California Voter ID Ban Puts Conservative Cities at Odds With State

19 hours ago

Jeffrey Sachs Warns of Looming US War With Iran

In a recent interview, renowned economist Jeffrey Sachs outlined his concerns about the possibility of war with Iran, framing it as the culm...

11 hours ago

11 hours ago

Jeffrey Sachs Warns of Looming US War With Iran

12 hours ago

Cat House on the Kings Urgently Needs You to Donate Dollars and Adopt Your New Best Friend

13 hours ago

The Surprising Sexual Politics of Nicole Kidman’s Kinky ‘Babygirl’

13 hours ago

Why It’s Hard to Control What Gets Taught in Public Schools

13 hours ago

FDA Approves Weight-Loss Drug to Treat Obstructive Sleep Apnea

14 hours ago

In a Calendar Rarity, Hanukkah Starts This Year on Christmas Day

14 hours ago

A Look at the $100 Billion in Disaster Relief in the Government Spending Bill

14 hours ago

It’s Eggnog Season. The Boozy Beverage Dates Back to Medieval England but Remains a Holiday Hit

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend