Senate Reaches Deal To Avert Shutdown: No Debt Limit Increase But Iron Dome A Sticking Point

Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., announced Wednesday evening that the chamber has reached a deal to vote Thursday on a short-term funding bill that should ensure the federal government remains open through Dec. 3. The resolution excludes the contentious debt limit increase, which the Republicans have vowed to defeat, but contains money for Israel's Iron Dome Defense that conservatives wanted included.

“We are ready to move forward. We have an agreement on the CR, the continuing resolution to prevent a government shutdown and we should be voting on that tomorrow morning,” Schumer said, The Hill reported. The bill will fund the government until Dec. 3, but because of the language stripping at the Senate, House will have to approve it again before midnight Thursday and hand it over to President Joe Biden to avert a shutdown.

The House passed a government funding bill last week on a party-line vote of 220-211 but Republicans on Monday blocked the bill as it included language that will increase the country’s borrowing limit. With the Senate reaching an agreement, Democrats are now dropping their bid to suspend the U.S. debt ceiling through 2022. Senate Republicans are pressuring Democrats to lift the debt limit without GOP support, but the Dems have so far refused a reconciliation option that would allow them to bypass the filibuster.

The bill includes $6.3 billion in funding for efforts to resettle Afghan refugees. The resolution also includes $28.6 billion in disaster assistance for victims of Hurricane Ida, which brought devastating damage when it made landfall in Louisiana late in August, CBS News reported. But a potential point of contention is money for the Iron Dome, NBC News reported.

Republicans are to include Iron Dome funding after it was scratched from the House bill because of opposition from progressives. Last week, the House voted on a separate defense bill that included funds for the Iron Dome funds, and that bill passed with an overwhelming 420-9 vote. It is expected that with Iron Dome funds could become a divisive factor when the bill bounces back to the House.