Congress Struggles To Finalize Spending Bill Before Friday's Deadline
Lawmakers continued to butt heads on President Trump's border wall, immigration, background checks for firearm purchases and other key points.
LEARN MORECongress' Spending Bill Is Out — 2 Days Before The Shutdown Deadline
Congress just released the text of a bipartisan funding bill that would secure money for the government through Sept. 30. Now it has to pass it.
Congress' Spending Bill Is Out — 2 Days Before The Shutdown Deadline
Getty Images
March 21, 2018
House Republicans have released the text of a funding bill they want passed to avoid yet another government shutdown this year.
Congress has to pass something, and the president has to sign it by midnight Friday in order to avoid another temporary outage in Washington.
The bipartisan proposal, which House Republicans released Wednesday night, is a $1.3 trillion deal to keep the government going through Sept. 30. It could be voted on in the House as early as Thursday, which would give the Senate a day to act.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said the Democrats feel good about the bill. Republican leaders were at the White House on Wednesday, reportedly to sell the president on the bill. His border wall would only get a fraction of the funding his administration has asked for.
The bill doesn't address DACA, but it does include the Fix NICS Act, a provision aimed at strengthening the federal background check system for buying firearms. It also includes a roundabout way to secure funding for a rail project connecting New York and New Jersey. President Donald Trump had threatened to veto the spending bill if it included funding for that project.
House Judiciary demands NY prosecutor testify about Trump probe
The House Judiciary Committee wants Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg to testify and turn over documents related to the Trump investigation.
Renewed effort to add Equal Rights Amendment to U.S. Constitution
Members of Congress are proposing a new bipartisan effort to progress the Equal Rights Amendment, which was first introduced in 1923.
Bill reintroduced to make 4-day workweek the national standard
The proposed bill would reduce the standard workweek from five days to four days, with no change to employee pay.
Top Stories
10:24
Why does today's audience say certain fictional characters are gay?
In this segment of "Pop Quiz," Scripps News explores how historians and viewers are speculating about queer subtext in new and old media.
2:50
Los Angeles school support staff at an impasse in higher pay talks
Cafeteria workers, bus drivers and other school support staff employees say the district isn't meeting their requests.
3:01
This basketball magazine is mixing art with 'outlandish' sport stories
Flagrant Magazine is carving out its own space in the sports media industry by mixing abstract basketball art with culture stories from off the court.
