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 The measure, which funds thousands of government programs from the
military to national parks through the September 30 fiscal year-end,
passed on a strong, 72-26 bipartisan vote. President Barack Obama is
expected to sign it into law by Saturday.
The vote came exactly three months after the end of a 16-day
government shutdown in October that was waged over disputed funding
of "Obamacare," the president's signature health care law.
"We're a little late, but we have gotten the job done," Senate
Appropriations Committee Barbara Mikulski said on the Senate floor.
The fiscal focus in Congress now turns to debate over another boost
in the $17 trillion federal debt limit. An increase could be needed
in as little as six weeks.
Republicans have not said what they will demand in return for
lifting the borrowing cap, but House Speaker John Boehner signaled
to reporters on Thursday that he has little desire for a massive
fight that threatens a damaging U.S. debt default.
The United States "shouldn't even get close to it," he told
reporters, calling for quick action on a bill to increase the limit.
DEVIL IN DETAILS
The Senate accelerated its normal debate procedures to vote on the
spending bill more quickly, avoiding a delayed start to a week-long
holiday recess — even though most lawmakers had not read much of the
1,582-page measure.
The massive spending bill was only introduced on Monday evening, and
it includes some controversial provisions that are only just now
coming to light.
A taxpayer advocacy group, Taxpayers for Common Sense, described as
"outrageous" a provision that would continue uranium enrichment
research by USEC Inc for some $62 million this year, despite the
company's announcement in December that it would file a pre-packaged
bankruptcy reorganization plan.
Boehner defended the provision for the company, which was privatized
in 1992 from former Department of Energy assets, including a
facility in his home state of Ohio.
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"There's all different types of bankruptcy proceedings. It is a
uranium enrichment facility with new technology. There's been a
bipartisan effort to proceed with this research that they're doing,"
Boehner said.
FUNDING FATIGUE
The swift consideration of the measure reflects a desire by members
of both parties in both the House and Senate to put the fiscal
battles behind them and ensure government funding during an election
year.
The measure eases some of the automatic, "sequester" spending cuts
by providing an additional $45 billion in funding, split evenly
between military and domestic programs.
But Republican Senator Ted Cruz, who launched an effort to gut
funding for Obama's signature healthcare law, remained defiant,
saying that Democrats were allowing Americans to suffer from
negative effects of the health insurance reforms.
Cruz, whose push to remove funding for the health law fueled the
government shutdown, tried again to stop funding for the law but his
amendment was blocked by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a
Democrat.
"The Majority leader and Senate Democrats are not listening to the
American people," Cruz said. "Instead they have chosen a course of
conduct, doing nothing, that is not responsible."
(Reporting by David Lawder, editing by Gary Crosse, David Gregorio
and Ken Wills)
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