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House Passes Stopgap Spending Bill, Kicks It to Senate

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Prospects in the Senate are uncertain.

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Yuri Gripas/Reuters

The House of Representatives on Thursday passed a stopgap government spending bill, kicking it to the Senate, where its prospects are uncertain ahead of a Friday night deadline to keep the federal government open. The legislation, known as a continuing resolution, passed 230 to 197 with mostly Republican votes. Six Democrats voted in favor of the measure. House GOP leaders had to wrangle for votes at the last minute, giving conservative members of the House Freedom Caucus a commitment for a later vote on legislation that would increase military spending. The House-passed bill funds the government through Feb. 16 and reauthorizes the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) for six years. In the Senate, a handful of Republicans have already come out against the measure in protest of a lack of progress on a longer term budget deal, while a majority of Senate Democrats vowed to vote against the bill because it does not codify protections for undocumented immigrants whose parents brought them to the U.S. illegally. Republicans on Thursday started using the hashtag “#SchumerShutdown,” referring to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, in an effort to blame Democrats for the likely shutdown on Friday at midnight. —Andrew Desiderio

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