US Lawmakers introduced a US$1.2 trillion spending package on Thursday that sets the stage for avoiding a partial government shutdown for several key federal agencies this weekend and allows the US Congress, nearly six months into the budget year, to complete its work funding the government through September.
Democrats were able to swat back scores of policy mandates and some of the steeper budget cuts that House Republicans were seeking to impose on nondefense programs, though House Speaker Mike Johnson highlighted some wins, including a nearly 24 percent increase in detention beds for migrants awaiting their immigration proceedings or removal from the country.
This year’s spending bills were divided into two packages. The first one cleared Congress two weeks ago, just hours before a shutdown deadline for the agencies funded through the bills.
Photo: AP
Now Congress is focused on the second, larger package, which includes about US$886 billion for the Defense Department, a more than 3 percent increase from last year’s levels.
The 1,012-page bill also funds the departments of US Homeland Security, Health and Human Services, Labor and others.
“Congress must now race to pass this package before government funding runs out this Friday,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said.
Nondefense spending would be relatively flat compared with the prior year, though some agencies, such as the Environmental Protection Agency, are taking a hit, and many agencies would not see their budgets keep up with inflation.
When combining the two packages, discretionary spending for the budget year would come to about US$1.66 trillion. That does not include programs such as Social Security and Medicare, and financing the country’s rising debt.
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise urged Republicans to vote for the measure, saying that more than 70 percent of the spending is to go to defense.
“At a time when the world’s on fire, more than ever, we need to make sure that we are properly funding our nation’s defense and supporting our troops,” he said.
Johnson said the bill is a serious commitment to strengthening national defense while expanding support for those serving in the military. The bill provides for a 5.2 percent pay increase for service members.
In promoting the bill, Republicans cited several ways it would help Israel. Most notably, they highlighted a prohibition on funding through March 2025 for the UN Relief and Works Agency, which is the main supplier of food, water and shelter to civilians in Gaza.
Republicans are insisting on cutting off funding to the agency after Israel alleged that a dozen employees of the agency were involved in the attack that Hamas conducted in Israel on Oct. 7 last year.
However, the prohibition does concern some lawmakers because many relief agencies say there is no way to replace its ability to deliver the humanitarian assistance that the US and others are trying to send to Gaza, where one-quarter of the 2.3 million residents are starving.
Democrats emphasized that humanitarian assistance would increase globally though, by about US$336.4 million.
A fire caused by a burst gas pipe yesterday spread to several homes and sent a fireball soaring into the sky outside Malaysia’s largest city, injuring more than 100 people. The towering inferno near a gas station in Putra Heights outside Kuala Lumpur was visible for kilometers and lasted for several hours. It happened during a public holiday as Muslims, who are the majority in Malaysia, celebrate the second day of Eid al-Fitr. National oil company Petronas said the fire started at one of its gas pipelines at 8:10am and the affected pipeline was later isolated. Disaster management officials said shutting the
DITCH TACTICS: Kenyan officers were on their way to rescue Haitian police stuck in a ditch suspected to have been deliberately dug by Haitian gang members A Kenyan policeman deployed in Haiti has gone missing after violent gangs attacked a group of officers on a rescue mission, a UN-backed multinational security mission said in a statement yesterday. The Kenyan officers on Tuesday were on their way to rescue Haitian police stuck in a ditch “suspected to have been deliberately dug by gangs,” the statement said, adding that “specialized teams have been deployed” to search for the missing officer. Local media outlets in Haiti reported that the officer had been killed and videos of a lifeless man clothed in Kenyan uniform were shared on social media. Gang violence has left
US Vice President J.D. Vance on Friday accused Denmark of not having done enough to protect Greenland, when he visited the strategically placed and resource-rich Danish territory coveted by US President Donald Trump. Vance made his comment during a trip to the Pituffik Space Base in northwestern Greenland, a visit viewed by Copenhagen and Nuuk as a provocation. “Our message to Denmark is very simple: You have not done a good job by the people of Greenland,” Vance told a news conference. “You have under-invested in the people of Greenland, and you have under-invested in the security architecture of this
Japan unveiled a plan on Thursday to evacuate around 120,000 residents and tourists from its southern islets near Taiwan within six days in the event of an “emergency”. The plan was put together as “the security situation surrounding our nation grows severe” and with an “emergency” in mind, the government’s crisis management office said. Exactly what that emergency might be was left unspecified in the plan but it envisages the evacuation of around 120,000 people in five Japanese islets close to Taiwan. China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has stepped up military pressure in recent years, including
RSS