U.S. Congress negotiators, White House set tentative deal on fiscal 2020
funding
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[December 13, 2019]
By Richard Cowan
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Senior negotiators
in the U.S. Congress on Thursday reached a tentative deal with the White
House on a series of bills to fund federal agencies through Sept. 30,
2020, which would avert partial government shutdowns next week.
A person familiar with the negotiations said that votes by the full
House of Representatives on a series of bills costing around $1.3
trillion could come as soon as Tuesday as Congress races to complete
this work before a Dec. 20 deadline when existing money expires.
While some technical issues still have to be resolved, the source said
that major disagreements between Democrats and Republicans have been
worked out.
That includes, according to the source, how to address Republican
President Donald Trump's demand for billions of dollars to fund further
construction of a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
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The source did not provide details on whether such funding would be
included in this package.
If the Democratic-controlled House approves the legislation next week,
the Republican-led Senate would also have to sign off before it can be
sent to Trump for his signing into law.
Federal agencies have been operating on temporary funding since Oct. 1,
the beginning of the current fiscal year, because Congress and the White
House had been unable to agree on full-year appropriations for agencies
such as the Department of Homeland Security, which administers many of
the Trump administration's controversial immigration policies.
A year ago, a record-long 35-day government shutdown of many federal
operations occurred when Congress failed to approve spending bills and
stopgap funding expired.
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The U.S. Capitol building is seen before a House Judiciary Committee
hearing on the impeachment inquiry into U.S. President Donald Trump
on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., December 4, 2019. REUTERS/Loren
Elliott
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Some of the same thorny issues, including billing U.S. taxpayers for
a wall that Trump vowed in 2016 would be paid for by Mexico, were at
the heart of the just-completed negotiations.
Democrats and some Republicans complain that a wall is an
inefficient solution to stemming the flow of immigrants and illegal
drugs from Central America and other foreign countries coming over
the southwestern border with Mexico.
There are estimates that, if fully built, it could cost over $24
billion over several years.
Over the past several months, Trump has used executive powers to
rechannel money from other programs to build some portions of a wall
since Congress has balked at its funding - a move that has angered
many members of Congress.
There also were tough battles over funding for the detention of
immigrants as they await court hearings on whether they will be
deported. Details also were not immediately available on how this
matter was resolved.
(Reporting by Richard Cowan; Editing by Chris Reese and Jonathan
Oatis)
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