Poll of the Day > Congress unveils $1.3 trillion spending bill as Friday deadline looms.

(+) Yeah! (+)

https://www.npr.org/2018/03/21/595512197/congress-unveils-1-3-trillion-spending-bill-as-friday-deadline-looms

Updated at 9:20 pm ET

House and Senate leaders posted a 2,232 page spending bill to fund the government through September 30 of this year on Wednesday evening ahead of a midnight Friday deadline.

The $1.3 trillion measure includes significant boosts to U.S. military spending supported by President Trump and congressional Republicans, while Democrats secured boosts to domestic spending that most Republicans oppose.

Congressional leaders celebrated the legislation publicly while they worked behind the scenes to convince skeptics to back the legislation. House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wisc., joined other Republicans in highlighting the military spending increases.

"With the biggest increase in defense funding in 15 years," Ryan said in a statement. "This critical legislation begins to reverse the damage of the last decade and allows us to create a 21st-century fighting force."

He is working to tamp down anger among conservatives over spending increase and changes to gun policy. Among their chief concerns, the legislation would usher in a period of trillion dollar deficits at a time when Republicans have complete control of the federal government.

Members of the conservative House Freedom Caucus said Wednesday that they plan to oppose the bill over those concerns.

"That is not in any way close what the election was about, close to what we campaigned on," said Ohio Republican Jim Jordan. "Not close to what we told the American people we were going to accomplish if they gave us the privileged to serve and be in power."

Democrats are facing a separate set of frustrations from the left flank of their party. Many immigration advocates are angry that the legislation includes $1.6 billion in border security money without corresponding protections for immigrants currently protected under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program.

Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, D-NY, focused instead on spending increases for domestic programs.

"Every bill takes compromise, and there was plenty here, but at the end of the day we Democrats feel very good because so many of our priorities for the middle class were included," Schumer said. "From opioid funding to rural broadband, and from student loans to child care, this bill puts workers and families first."

The agreement is loaded with dozens of unrelated policies, known as "riders," ranging from gun control to election security aimed at wooing skeptical lawmakers to back the deal.

Adding riders is a common if sometimes controversial practice used by both parties and the president to jockey for their priorities because they are guaranteed to become law on a must-pass spending bill.

The fight over border security and immigration became a major drag on negotiations in recent weeks with both sides refusing to negotiate.

The White House initially wanted $25 billion, but Democrats pushed for a far smaller amount with explicit restrictions on how the money could be spent.

The final $1.6 billion agreement would fund new fencing along roughly 30 miles of the border that was authorized under an earlier bill. Negotiators also reached a deal to repair existing fencing while explicitly protecting the Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge in Texas.

The bill also includes nearly $700 million for election security, including additional money for the FBI to conduct counter-intelligence to fight Russian cyber attacks. States would benefit from an infusion of money for election technology grants to keep elections systems safe.

Negotiators included several bipartisan items, like $2.8 billion to battle opioid addiction as well as major funding increases for the Department of Veterans Affairs, federal highway projects and high-speed broadband development.

But what isn't included is nearly as significant as what made it in the bill.

The spending measure is widely expected to be one of the last must-pass bills to come up for a vote this year, meaning immigration has few opportunities for consideration in the coming months.

Looming midterm election and the reality that the political season will soon overtake any ability to advance any major legislation before Election Day.

Democrats remain frustrated that the bill does not deal with immigration. Many immigration advocates worry that DACA cannot pass if it is not included in a broader bipartisan bill.

Republicans also struck down a push to include subsidy payments that would help shore up the individual market places under the Affordable Care Act and partially subsidize premiums for some low-income workers.

Why you spending on military though? What a waste of money.
---

zebatov posted...

Why you spending on military though? What a waste of money.

For the military parade :D
---

Yknow the military could get by with a much smaller budget if the money wasn't so mismanaged.
---

zebatov posted...

Why you spending on military though? What a waste of money.

Countries that don't like us are spending lots of money on it. Namely, Russia. As said as it is, we can't really shirk funding military anymore.
---

zebatov posted...

Why you spending on military though? What a waste of money.

It's to bring freedom and peace to non-democratic countries.

Unless they have no oil.
---

chaosbowser posted...

zebatov posted...

Why you spending on military though? What a waste of money.

Countries that don't like us are spending lots of money on it. Namely, Russia. As said as it is, we can't really shirk funding military anymore.

Plus, we get stuff like this when we actually try and shrink the military: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revolt_of_the_Admirals
---

I really hope they arent trying to cut money from the EPA superfund site program like Trump had proposed

There are kids dying from radon caused cancer in north St. Louis, that shit needs to be cleaned up
---

Kind of funny, though. Spending $1.6 billion on a section of border wall. American tax dollars at work people. Not Mexico.

Bet all you Trump voters that voted for him solely so Mexico pays for the wall regret it.

WastelandCowboy posted...

Kind of funny, though. Spending $1.6 billion on a section of border wall. American tax dollars at work people. Not Mexico.

Bet all you Trump voters that voted for him solely so Mexico pays for the wall regret it.

He already said the US would front the costs but they would get it covered by Mexico (implying that it would come out of money sent to Mexico.).
---

Can everyone just show up at the White House until they do something right
---

Kyuubi4269 posted...

WastelandCowboy posted...

Kind of funny, though. Spending $1.6 billion on a section of border wall. American tax dollars at work people. Not Mexico.

Bet all you Trump voters that voted for him solely so Mexico pays for the wall regret it.

He already said the US would front the costs but they would get it covered by Mexico (implying that it would come out of money sent to Mexico.).

Source?

Also, lol. Mexico's not paying for anything. It's American dollars. Both ways.

I don't want a wall, but because it was a campaign promise - i'm demanding it. Otherwise Trump is a failure.
---

Yes just what we need. A larger military.
---

Lokarin posted...

I don't want a wall, but because it was a campaign promise - i'm demanding it. Otherwise Trump is a failure.

And so was literally every other president apparently.
---

Jen0125 posted...

Yes just what we need. A larger military.

It's all just a pissing contest anyway.