What's included in Congress' $1.7 trillion spending bill
Congressional lawmakers have revealed their $1.7 trillion spending bill to avoid a government shutdown ahead of the holidays. The bill includes measures for many of President Biden's economic plans and marks the last major legislative action of this Congress before the new one convenes in the new year.
The "omnibus," as it's called, covers a wide variety of areas, including defense, healthcare, and foreign and domestic aid. It also increases spending from the last fiscal year, reports The New York Times. The bill will need Republican approval to pass, so Democrats agreed to keep some areas of funding the same as before, like education and health, despite these being priorities for the Biden administration.
The bill includes close to $119 billion for veterans' care, a 22 percent increase. It also cuts pandemic-era Medicaid policies and reduces Medicare rates by 2 percent in 2023 and 3.25 percent in 2024 (in contrast to the 4.5 percent cut from January), Politico explains. The move "will have consequences on health care access for older Americans," according to Jack Resneck, president of the American Medical Association.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
In terms of defense, the bill provides over $40 billion in aid to Ukraine and another $40 billion in aid for natural disasters around the country. In total, the bill allots $858 billion in military spending and $772 billion for domestic programs.
The Senate and then the House must approve the package by Friday to avoid a government shutdown, The Washington Post reports. Democrats need at least ten Republican senators to sign on to the bill.
"Nobody wants a shutdown, nobody benefits from a shutdown, so I hope nobody will stand in the way of funding the government ASAP," remarked Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.).
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Devika Rao has worked as a staff writer at The Week since 2022, covering science, the environment, climate and business. She previously worked as a policy associate for a nonprofit organization advocating for environmental action from a business perspective.
-
Political cartoons for October 26Cartoons Sunday’s editorial cartoons include Young Republicans group chat, Louvre robbery, and more
-
Why Britain is struggling to stop the ransomware cyberattacksThe Explainer New business models have greatly lowered barriers to entry for criminal hackers
-
Greene’s rebellion: a Maga hardliner turns against TrumpIn the Spotlight The Georgia congresswoman’s independent streak has ‘not gone unnoticed’ by the president
-
NY attorney general asks public for ICE raid footageSpeed Read Rep. Dan Goldman claims ICE wrongly detained four US citizens in the Canal Street raid and held them for a whole day without charges
-
Trump’s huge ballroom to replace razed East WingSpeed Read The White House’s east wing is being torn down amid ballroom construction
-
Trump expands boat strikes to Pacific, killing 5 moreSpeed Read The US military destroyed two more alleged drug smuggling boats in international waters
-
Trump demands millions from his administrationSpeed Read The president has requested $230 million in compensation from the Justice Department for previous federal investigations
-
Trump nominee in limbo after racist texts leakSpeed Read Paul Ingrassia lost Republican support following the exposure of past racist text messages
-
Trump begins East Wing demolition for ballroomspeed read The president’s new construction will cost $250 million
-
Appeals court clears Trump’s Portland troop deploymentSpeed Read A divided federal appeals court ruled that President Trump can send the National Guard to Portland
-
Millions turn out for anti-Trump ‘No Kings’ ralliesSpeed Read An estimated 7 million people participated, 2 million more than at the first ‘No Kings’ protest in June
