A
divided House voted Thursday to prevent a government shutdown after an
eleventh-hour deal brought conservatives aboard. But the GOP-written
measure faced gloomy prospects in the Senate, and it remained unclear
whether lawmakers would be able to find a way to keep federal offices
open past a Friday night deadline.
The
House voted by a near party-line 230-197 vote to approve the
legislation, which would keep agency doors open and hundreds of
thousands of federal employees at work through Feb. 16. The measure is
designed to give White House and congressional bargainers more time to
work through disputes on immigration and the budget that they've tangled
over for months.
House
passage was assured after the House Freedom Caucus reached an accord
with House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis. The leader of the hard-right group,
Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., said Ryan promised future votes on extra
defense spending and on a conservative, restrictive immigration bill.
Meadows also spoke to President Donald Trump.
But
most Senate Democrats and some Republicans were expected to oppose the
measure when it reaches that chamber later Thursday. Democrats were
hoping to spur slow-moving immigration talks, while a handful of
Republicans, including Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., were pressing for
swifter action on immigration and a long-sought boost in Pentagon
spending.
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