Senate passes $1.3 trillion spending bill, sending it for Trump's signature

Congress passes $1.3 billion spending package

(Image credit: Getty Images)

last updated 23 March 2018

Early Friday morning, the Senate passed a $1.3 trillion omnibus bill to fund the government through September. The 65-32 vote came hours after the House passed the bill, 256-167; the 2,232-page legislation was released Wednesday night. Trump is expected to sign the bill, likely the last major legislation Congress gets through this year, before Saturday, averting a third government shutdown this year.

Some fiscal conservatives were upset with the price tag of the spending bill, which includes big increases for the military and domestic programs — as sought by Republicans and Democrats, respectively. But Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), who caused the last, brief government shutdown, did not reprise his efforts to block this legislation after intense discussions with Senate leaders. Sen. James Risch (R-Idaho) did slow down the bill a bit Thursday evening over a proposal to rename a forest in Idaho after Cecil Andrus, a former four-term Idaho governor who died last year. Risch backed down after the Senate agreed to separate legislation postponing the forest renaming. It's unclear if the House will approve that motion.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.