Senate Democrats block government spending bill

Senate Democrats blocked a proposed government spending bill Tuesday, downing the proposal with a 55-45 vote that threatens to shut down the government if an agreement is not reached by the Oct. 1 deadline. The resolution, backed by Republican leadership, would have funded the government through Dec. 9 but was rejected on the grounds that it did not give aid to Flint, Michigan, but did provide for flood victims in Louisiana, Maryland, and West Virginia. Democrats have said they don't oppose the flood aid, but that it should not be included in the funding bill unless aid also goes toward Flint's ongoing water crisis.

"Why do you feel you have to punish people in Louisiana ... for Flint when there's a pathway forward on Flint through the WRDA bill?" Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) said, naming a bill the Senate approved to give Flint $220 million for water infrastructure. The House version of the WRDA bill — fully named the Water Resources Development Act — did not include the provision for aid to Flint, however, meaning the two chambers would need to re-negotiate it after returning from the election hiatus.

"The Republicans are essentially saying, 'The disasters in our states are more important than the disasters in your state,'" Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said. "It is unfair, and it is wrong.”

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