Who else was ready for yet another showdown between the Dems and the GOP about approving funding to keep the government ready? Our guess was no one wanted to endure it again, and Congress was listening.
The Senate appropriators released a stopgap funding bill to avoid a shutdown and delay broader government funding negotiations until after the midterms.
And here's how they managed to reach agreement: The legislation includes language to prevent President Trump from putting political appointees in charge of grant approval for the duration of the funding patch.
Senate Democrats had pushed for this addition, and top Republicans like Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski supported blocking the regulation. That seemed to leave no choice but compromise.
And with the midterms coming up fast to determine who controls the Senate and House of Representatives for the remainder of Donald Trump's time in office, there seemed to be no appetite for a protracted public battle.
To that end, the Senate plan, unlike the House version, includes provisions demanded by Democrats to ensure no new funding goes to immigration enforcement agencies.
The Senate proposal also includes some of the funding increases and authorizations the White House requested but does not include major military boosts like an extra $1 billion for a "Trump-class" battleship.
Under the bipartisan plan, federal agencies would be funded through Dec. 11. Senate leaders set an initial procedural vote for Monday night, per Politico, and want to pass the bill by the end of the week — just before the Senate's annual summer five-week recess.
Senate Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Susan Collins, R-Maine, called the Senate draft a “major step” toward preventing a government shutdown."
“This measure gives Congress the time we need to continue our work on bipartisan appropriations bills, which are always my strong preference for handling annual government funding,” she said.
