THE United States Congress averted a shutdown by mere hours. This measure extends the government funding for the next 45 days.
The Congress managed to pass the bill with a little drama after Democrat representative Jamaal Bowman pulled a fire alarm in a capitol office, for allegedly attempting to delay the voting.
Bowman, who is currently under investigation because of what happened, apologized and said the action was unintentional.
The stopgap bill, which was immediately signed by President Joe Biden, funds the U.S. Government at the current $1.6-T annual rate until the November 17 deadline.
Lawmakers need to pass another bill to avoid a government shutdown.
The stopgap bill funds food, federal wages, and assistance programs although it missing the provisions on border policy changes and the aid to Ukraine. The U.S. Has already supplied some $46-B in military aid to Ukraine since February 2022.
And in recent months the US has sent military equipment to Ukraine – including long-range missiles and Abrams tanks.
However, the recently signed stopgap funding bill did not include the $6-B in additional military aid for Ukraine requested by the White House.
Although Biden commended averting the shutdown, he insisted on providing more aid to Kyiv.
Meanwhile, U.S. Republican speaker Kevin McCarthy from the Republican Party blasted the Democrat-led Senate and Biden over appropriation bills and the country’s border crisis.
In a CBS interview, McCarthy said that he remains committed to helping Ukraine throughout its conflict with Russia, however, U.S. border security issues should be a bigger priority for American lawmakers.
“The priority for me is America and our borders. Now, I support being able to make sure Ukraine has the weapons they need, but I firmly support [America’s] border first,” according to Kevin McCarthy U.S. House Speaker.
He also stressed the importance of securing America’s own interests as more Americans are dying at the border than Americans dying in Ukraine and suggested that future financial aid for Ukraine must contain provisions to ensure American border security.
Meanwhile, Eynar Tanjen, an economic and political affairs commentator, said that if the short-term funding had not been approved, ordinary Americans, including government workers and people in various service industries, would have been affected directly, and that the stopgap funding bill is not a final solution to huge bipartisan divisions.
As Tanjen has said, the U.S. will either find another continuing resolution or will face a government shutdown if they fail to pass it by November 17.
