Associated Press
Congressional leaders have reached an agreement on topline spending levels for the current fiscal year that could help avoid a partial government shutdown later this month.
The agreement largely hues to spending caps for defense and domestic programs that Congress set as part of a bill to suspend the debt limit until 2025. But it does provide some concessions to House Republicans who viewed the spending restrictions in that agreement as insufficient.
In a letter to colleagues, House Speaker Mike Johnson said Sunday it will secure $16 billion in additional spending cuts from the previous agreement brokered by then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy and President Joe Biden and is about $30 billion less than what the Senate was considering.
“This represents the most favorable budget agreement Republicans have achieved in over a decade,” Johnson writes.
Biden said the agreement “moves us one step closer to preventing a needless government shutdown and protecting important national priorities.”
“It reflects the funding levels that I negotiated with both parties and signed into law last spring. It rejects deep cuts to programs hardworking families count on, and provides a path to passing full-year funding bills that deliver for the American people and are free of any extreme policies,” Biden said in a statement.
The agreement speeds up the roughly $20 billion in cuts already agreed to for the Internal Revenue Service and rescinds about $6 billion in COVID relief funds that had been approved but not yet spent, according to Johnson’s letter.
Lawmakers needed an agreement on overall spending levels so that appropriators could write the bills that set line-by-line funding for agencies. Funding is set to lapse Jan. 19 for some agencies and Feb. 2 for others.
The agreement is separate from the negotiations that are taking place to secure additional funding for Israel and Ukraine while also curbing restrictions on asylum claims at the U.S. border.
In a joint statement, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries also voiced their support for the agreement.
“It will also allow us to keep the investments for hardworking American families secured by the legislative achievements of President Biden and Congressional Democrats,” Schumer and Jeffries said. “Finally, we have made clear to Speaker Mike Johnson that Democrats will not support including poison pill policy changes in any of the twelve appropriations bills put before the Congress.
3 comments
Earl Pitts "Sage Political Expert Emaritas" American
January 7, 2024 at 5:23 pm
BUZZZ BUZZZ BUZZZ:
THIS EMERGENCY ALERT IS BROUGHT TO BY THE SAGE EARL PITTS AMERICAN:
BUZZZ BUZZZ BUZZZ:
America as you can its clearly just a Sunday piece of A. P. Propaganda.
Everybody just “RELAX YOUR POLITICAL SPHINCTERS” until we come back “On-LINE” with the “REAL NEWS CYCLE” on Late Monday or early Tuesday.
This is ment to PRE-SHAPE your opinions before the “SAGE TRUTH” comes out.
So yeah America, any “Late Friday thru Early Monday” A. P. “FAKE NEWS OPINION SHAPER PROPAGANDA IS BEST IGNORED”.
BUZZZ BUZZZ BUZZZ:
THIS EMERGENCY ALERT IS BROUGHT TO BY THE SAGE EARL PITTS AMERICAN:
BUZZZ BUZZZ BUZZZ:
Thank you America,
Again everyone, Earl has authorized you, one and all, not to allow this “Fake News A. P. Propaganda” get your Political Sphincter all Painefully Locked Up”.
You are hereby authorized by ME, Earl Pitts American, to relax your political sphincter and not allow “Fake News A. P.” to get you all worked up on “The Day of Our Lord” Sunday Evening”.
Again you all may relax your sphincters and sleep in heavenly peace as you prepare for your busy work week ahead.
I’ll tell you when its time to re-locate to New Zealand.
Earl Pitts American
Eugene Krabs
January 7, 2024 at 6:24 pm
Thanks Mr. Pitts,
I would have lost an entire nights sleep over this A.P. BS and been off my game for a $ 69 Million closing meeting Monday Morning on a restaurant chain purchase had you not given me and the rest of the Nation your Sage interpertation of the A. P’s evil intent here.
Thanks again I am yawn … getting ready to relax and yawn … get a good nights sleep … yawn … thanks to … yawn … you Mr. Pitts … yawn …
Eugene … yawn
Dont Say FLA
January 7, 2024 at 6:41 pm
Mike Johnson admits he worked with Democrats? It’s fixin’a be new speaker time. Again.
LOL @ today’s inept G0P where you do your job, you get fired.
You try and Eff over the Constitution and the USA, they’ll pick you for losing all over again and throwing more hissy fits.
Comments are closed.