![]() ![]() ![]() Two years ago he sparked a lengthy partial government shutdown over the border wall, but both sides would like to clear away the pile of unfinished legislation to give the Biden administration a fresh start. ![]() Getting Trump to sign the measure is another challenge. READ MORE: McConnell proposes shifting unspent small business funds to COVID-19 aid A battle over using budget sleight of hand to add a 2 percentage point, $12 billion increase to domestic programs to accommodate rapidly growing veterans health care spending is an issue, as are Trump’s demands for U.S-Mexico border wall funding. That’s a typical way to deal with a handoff to a new administration, but McConnell and Pelosi are two veterans of the Capitol’s appropriations culture and are pressing hard for a catchall spending package. Top items for December’s lame-duck session: KEEPING THE GOVERNMENT OPENĪt a bare minimum, lawmakers need to keep the government running by passing a stopgap spending bill known as a continuing resolution, which would punt $1.4 trillion worth of unfinished agency spending into next year. It’ll take serious, good-faith conversations among top players to determine what’s possible, but those haven’t transpired yet. The House has truncated its schedule, and Senate Republicans are joining Democrats in forgoing the in-person lunch meetings that usually anchor their workweeks. Time is working against lawmakers as well, as is the Capitol’s emerging status as a COVID-19 hotspot. But it may be difficult to overcome bitter divisions regarding a long-delayed COVID-19 relief package that’s a top priority of business, state and local governments, educators and others. The route preferred by top lawmakers like House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., is to agree upon and pass an omnibus spending bill for the government. The only absolute must-do business is preventing a government shutdown when a temporary spending bill expires on Dec. WASHINGTON (AP) - After months of shadowboxing amid a tense and toxic campaign, Capitol Hill’s main players are returning for one final, perhaps futile, attempt at deal-making on a challenging menu of year-end business.ĬOVID-19 relief, a $1.4 trillion catchall spending package, and defense policy - and a final burst of judicial nominees - dominate a truncated two- or three-week session occurring as the coronavirus pandemic rockets out of control in President Donald Trump’s final weeks in office. ![]()
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