US Congress approves spending extension, avoiding shutdown

The US Senate passed a spending measure early on Saturday, ensuring that federal government funding will continue through mid-March, the New York Times reported.The 85-to-11 vote came shortly after the midnight deadline, preventing a potential government shutdown that would have disrupted services and services just before the holidays.The bill, which was also approved earlier in the House, provides USD 100 billion in disaster relief for communities still recovering from storms, while delaying major budget decisions until 2025, when the incoming Republican-controlled Congress will take office.Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat from New York, described the measure as a compromise that avoided a crisis but still included key provisions for American families. President Biden signed the bill into law soon after it passed in the Senate, ensuring that the government would remain funded despite the past week's chaotic political battles.Earlier in the week, tensions had risen when House Republicans initially included a provision to suspend the federal debt limit in the proposed funding bill. "House Republicans agree to raise the debt limit by USD 1.5 trillion in the first reconciliation package, with an agreement that we will cut USD 2.5 trillion in net mandatory spending in the reconciliation process," Republican leadership stated in a proposal, as per the New York Times.Despite the last-minute compromises, the passage of the bill highlighted ongoing divisions within the Republican Party, as well as between the two chambers of Congress. "House Democrats have successfully stopped extreme MAGA Republicans from shutting down the government, crashing the economy and hurting working-class Americans all across the land," said Representative Hakeem Jeffries, the Democratic leader.