UPDATE - 9 p.m. EST: A White House official confirmed that President Trump has signed the bill funding the government through Feb. 8, ending the government shutdown at 69 hours.
Earlier in the day, Congress approved a bipartisan plan Monday to end the government shutdown. For the Senate, it includes assurances that the DACA issue will be taken up next month, but whether it will make it through the House is another matter.
- Senate, House approves a bipartisan deal
- Bill only funds government through Feb. 8
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The Senate approved ending a possible filibuster 81-18. It later passed the deal in a final vote Monday afternoon. The House then passed that bill through.
Senators were supposed to vote at 1 a.m. Monday, but their vote was moved to noon.
Lawmakers debated late into the night on how to reach a deal.
Around two dozen lawmakers, including Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Florida, spent the weekend behind closed-doors, looking for a compromise.
Nelson tweeted the following Monday:
This is a win for bipartisanship. For days, I've been working with a group of moderate senators to end the shutdown & get a commitment to take up other bills. As a result, there is now a path forward to help Dreamers, fund the military and provide disaster assistance to Florida.
— Bill Nelson (@SenBillNelson) January 22, 2018
The deal includes funding the government for three weeks, with guarantees of votes on DACA and other issues. If a deal is not reached by Feb. 8, the government will shut down again.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Democrats agreed to back the bill reopening government after he and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell agreed to begin debating an immigration bill by Feb. 8.
Democrats lined up to vote on the deal, but the progressive wing is not happy about the bill, fearing they did not get enough assurances that the Dreamer issue will be saved.
The House would still have to vote on the new deal, and then subsequent DACA bills.
Already some Florida representatives are indicating where they stand on the measure, and a split can be seen among Democrats so far.
I’m voting NO on the bill to temporarily reopen the government. The failure in leadership by the majority has abandoned the American people—from our military, to hurricane victims, to opioid addicts, to veterans, to seniors, to DREAMers. pic.twitter.com/0wjRGKRPu5
— Rep. Val Demings (@RepValDemings) January 22, 2018
Pleased that cooler heads prevailed & a deal has been reached. I intend to vote yes on new CR to allow good-faith bipartisan negotiations to continue & will urge my colleagues to do the same. Our goal should be a full-year budget that addresses our defense & domestic priorities.
— Rep Stephanie Murphy (@RepStephMurphy) January 22, 2018
Immigration reform continues to be sticking points for passing a bill. Democrats want Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) saved, while Republicans say they are holding American workers and the military hostage with politics.
Florida Sen. Marco Rubio tweeted:
Democrat position on #Shutdown untenable. Americans know it’s better to keep govt. open while continuing to negotiate these other issues 6/8
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) January 20, 2018
However, Sen. Bill Nelson says his issues with the spending bill go further than just immigration.
Another reason I voted against the CR was because it failed to provide Florida the hurricane disaster assistance it still desperately needs. Especially hurt was Florida’s citrus industry. It's now teetering on the brink of bankruptcy unless we can get them some help immediately.
— Bill Nelson (@SenBillNelson) January 21, 2018
Meanwhile, thousands of federal employees are being placed on furlough, meaning they will not report for work.
More than a million civilian federal workers are exempt from furlough, like Transportation Security Administration agents and prison guards.
So that means you will likely have trouble entering federal parks or museums while the shutdown remains.
New York State will reopen the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. We will not stand by as this symbol of freedom and opportunity goes dark. pic.twitter.com/s73nTc8ipK
— Andrew Cuomo (@NYGovCuomo) January 21, 2018