After the U.S. House of Representatives passed a stopgap bill Thursday to avert a government shutdown the Senate followed suit, followed by President Joe Biden signing it Friday evening.
Before a 77-13 vote, Utah Sen. Mike Lee stood against the continuing resolution. He said on X, formerly known as Twitter, that since the government will now be funded until March 22, this gives the Republican Conference an opportunity to “(1) force Biden to enforce the border (by attaching HR2 to a spending bill), and (2) cut spending by $130 billion (by rejecting an earmark-laden omnibus).”
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“Let’s do it,” Lee, a Republican, added.
HR2 would restart construction of the border wall, deploy more Border Patrol agents, strengthen laws against human trafficking, and end the Biden administration’s catch-and-release policy while creating a stricter asylum process. The Republican-controlled House has already passed this bill.
In another post, the Utah senator said if Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., helps the GOP to pass HR2 as a part of the spending bills, Lee will shave his “head again in solidarity.”
“Heck, he can even hold the clippers,” Lee added. His remarks came after Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, praised Fetterman for supporting “some provisions in HR2.”
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“The new and improved Fetterman can wear whatever he wants if he keeps talking like that,” Roy told Fox News reporter Chad Pergram, referring to Fetterman’s preference for wearing shorts and hoodies while on the Hill.
Fetterman told reporters his only qualm is for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, status to be protected, “but the rest can be on the table.”
Before the bill’s passage, the Senate considered Sen. Ted Cruz’s amended stopgap bill. It called for a 10% cut in all non-defense discretionary programs, from Veterans Affairs to health care and research, as the senior director of the federal budget policy at the Center for American Progress, a liberal policy institute, pointed out on X. This would entail roughly $73 billion in cuts, according to Politico.
Politico reported Cruz, R-Texas, also attached HR2, to crack down on the wave of migrants crossing the southern border.
“Thirty-two Senate Republicans just voted for a continuing resolution that would save taxpayers $130 billion, along with HR2, which would force Biden to secure the border,” Lee said. “That means 17 Senate Republicans did not support it. Why?”
The Utah senator, too, proposed a bill to keep spending at current levels until Sept. 30, triggering spending cuts across the board, but it was rejected in a 77-12 vote. Kansas Republican Sen. Roger Marshall’s similar amendment also didn’t pass.
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Sen. Mitt Romney did not vote on the multiple amended versions or the final bill on Thursday evening.
The White House celebrated the “good news” of an averted shutdown. Biden in his statement said the stopgap is a “short-term fix — not a long-term solution.”
He called on House Republicans to also pass the bill containing border provisions and foreign aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, saying House GOP lawmakers “refuse to hold a vote” on it.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., thanked his colleagues for finishing the job.
“As I’ve said repeatedly to the Speaker, the only way to get things done in divided government is bipartisanship,” he said. “I’m glad the Speaker heard our plea and worked with us to avert a shutdown.”
Schumer said he hoped to pass the first six funding bills before the first continuing resolution deadline next week and work on the remaining appropriations before the second deadline, March 22.
Source: https://t-tees.com
Category: WHY
