US Congress has finalized an agreement to meet the spending cap for the rest of 2024, avoiding a partial government shutdown by reaching a total of $1.6tn. This amount includes $886bn for defense and more than $704bn for non-defense, but there is a disagreement over the exact numbers. Despite the discrepancy, the deal still needs approval from the House of Representatives and Senate, and lawmakers have just under two weeks to finalize funding and prevent the suspension of some federal services.
The agreement involves a proposed plan to accelerate a $20bn cut to the Internal Revenue Service and take back $6.1bn in unused Covid funds, while protecting against cuts to benefits and health. Republicans, however, have been seeking to freeze overall government spending by cutting some budgets, leading to criticism of the deal by the conservative House Freedom Caucus. President Biden and other Democrats, on the other hand, emphasized that the deal moves the country one step closer to preventing a government shutdown while protecting important national priorities.
In addition to… the agreement also plays a crucial role in negotiations for further military aid to Ukraine and security aid to Israel as they seek to eliminate Hamas. As the deadline approaches, it is clear that both parties must work together to maintain important funding priorities for the American people and avoid a government shutdown.
