Congress may unveil the $1.1 trillion “omnibus” spending bill late Monday night.
Congress had until Dec. 11 to pass a government-wide spending bill or risked a large-scale government shutdown. Last week, Congress passed a stop-gap spending bill that gave lawmakers more time to negotiate and assemble the omnibus bill. The stop-gap bill extended the deadline to Wednesday.
According to The Hill website, the trillion-dollar omnibus bill is expected to be unveiled Monday evening, or perhaps Tuesday.
There was “progress made over the weekend but significant issues remain,” one Democratic aide said Monday morning. AshLee Strong, a spokeswoman for Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), echoed that same message: “Negotiations continued throughout the weekend and progress was made but there is no deal yet and the discussions continue.”
The negotiations have been very secretive, while public debate over the bill has focused on conservative policy preferences.
Democrats have said that they will not pass a bill that includes conservative policy preferences, such as defunding the U.S. refugee program, defunding Planned Parenthood, or curbing EPA regulations.
House Speaker Paul Ryan has promised that he will allow lawmakers three days to read the trillion-dollar bill before they have to vote yes or no.
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