US Senate approves spending package, but short government shutdown likely

"United States senators have approved a last-minute deal to avert the worst impacts of an imminent government shutdown, after Democratic anger over the killing of two people by immigration agents derailed government funding talks. After hours of delay, the US Senate passed the compromise spending package on Friday by a bipartisan vote of 71 to 29."

"But a shutdown is still set to begin on Saturday because the House of Representatives is out of session until Monday, meaning it cannot ratify the Senate's agreement before the midnight deadline on Friday making a weekend funding lapse unavoidable. Senate leaders say the legislation approved on Friday will nonetheless greatly increase the chances that the shutdown ends quickly, potentially within days."

"Technically, there will be a partial government shutdown come midnight on Saturday, Al Jazeera's Rosiland Jordan said, reporting from Washington, DC. The earliest that the House of Representatives can take a look at the changes, which the US Senate approved late on Friday, is not before Monday. That's because they've been in recess all this week. They should be coming back to Washington this weekend, Jordan said."

Democratic anger over the killing of two people by immigration agents during a Minneapolis crackdown stalled government funding talks and drove the funding impasse. The US Senate approved a last-minute bipartisan compromise spending package late Friday by a 71–29 vote. The House of Representatives is out of session until Monday and cannot ratify the Senate agreement before the midnight deadline, making a weekend partial government shutdown unavoidable. Senate leaders say the approved legislation increases the likelihood that the shutdown will end quickly, potentially within days. The Trump administration supported the Senate compromise, but political polarization over aggressive immigration raids could prolong the lapse.

Read at www.aljazeera.com