It’s official: a government shutdown has been averted. The House spending bill, passed by a majority vote this afternoon, passed the Senate, albeit ahead of the palace intrigue of Senator Michael Bennet (D-CO). The Colorado Democrat was outraged that the package did not include aid for Ukraine, prompting him to stall on the legislation for hours.
There was a risk that the Democrats would be the party that would shut down Congress, which is why many members of the upper house, although irritated, were convinced that the details would be finalized at the last minute and the bill would be adopted. Bennet finally gave in after obtaining a guarantee that a separate aid package would be presented later (via Axles):
A) A government shutdown was avoided. The Senate votes to align with the House of Representatives and fund the government for 6 weeks. The vote in the Senate was 88-9
Nine no’s. Everything from GOPers.
— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) October 1, 2023
Schumer: It’s been a day full of twists and turns, but Americans can breathe a sigh of relief: there will be no government shutdown.
— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) October 1, 2023
Congress entered the weekend on track to fail to extend federal funding until midnight Saturday, but lawmakers now have until mid-November to reach an agreement on the annual spending bills.
News for us: The Senate voted 88-9 in favor of the bill, with nine Senate Republicans voting against it.
Meaning. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), Roger Marshall (R-Tenn. ) Kan.), Rand Paul (R-Ky.), Eric Schmitt (Most.) and J.D. Vance (R. Ohio) voted against the measure.
The bill passed the House 335-91 earlier Saturday, with 90 Republicans and one Democrat voting against it.
[…]
Intrigue: Several Senate Democrats were furious that the measure did not include aid for Ukraine, and Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) delayed a vote on the measure for several hours to secure a vote commitment on an additional Ukraine aid package.
Senate Republicans blocked a vote earlier in the day on a bipartisan Senate bill providing $6 billion in aid to Ukraine to facilitate passage of the bill by the House.
“A majority of Senate Republicans remain committed to helping our friends on the front lines,” Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said in a speech on the floor just before the House voted on the bill.
The government now has until November when we will have to do it again.
Dem CO Sen Bennet on Ukraine Aid Suspension: We succeeded because we were able to get a leadership statement, which will be released soon, about bipartisan support for fully funding Ukraine and making sure we play our part
— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) October 1, 2023
