WASHINGTON, D.C. — Late Wednesday night, the U.S. Senate voted 87-11 to pass a continuing resolution to keep the government up and running through the holidays.
The House passed Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R- LA) stopgap measure on Tuesday with 209 Democrats and 127 Republicans voting to support it. The vote was structured to only require a two-thirds vote for passage.
The continuing resolution will fund Agriculture, Transportation, Housing and Urban Development and Veterans Affairs departments through January 19 and fund the Defense Department and other remaining parts of the government through early February.
It is a clean resolution, meaning there were no spending cuts that could have alienated Democrat support, which was crucial for the measure to pass the House.
The short term, or “stopgap” measure does not include support for Israel nor Ukraine. Funding to support the two nations at war could be discussed when lawmakers return after Thanksgiving.
“We must finish passing President Biden’s emergency supplemental with aid to Israel, Ukraine, humanitarian assistance for innocent civilians in Gaza, and funds for the Indo-Pacific,” said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D- NY) Wednesday night. “I hope we can come to an agreement even if neither side gets everything they insist on. But we will be working on it immediately when we get back after Thanksgiving.”
Although it does not include the aid, the stopgap measure will keep the lights on into the new year. The stage is set for a showdown in early 2024 when all the pieces to the appropriations puzzle will need to be finalized.
