The US House of Representatives passed a spending bill today narrowly avoiding a consequential government shutdown just few hours before the deadline came to end. The Democrats joined Republican lawmakers to advance the bill to keep the federal government funded until mid-March next year. The bill passed with 366 votes in favor compared to 34 against with more Democrats voting to support it than Republicans.
The legislation is headed to the Democrat-led Senate for a vote today before it can be signed by President Joe Biden. If senators drag their feet, the government will still cease to be funded at midnight, and non-essential operations will start to grind to a halt, with up to 875,000 workers furloughed and 1.4 million more required to work without pay.
An earlier version of the bill on Thursday failed to pass after controversy stemmed from demands by President-elect Donald Trump to include a national debt ceiling extension and objections to certain spending items in the bill. Speaker Mike Johnson introduced a revised plan after the first measure failed.
