Breaking News: House kicks budget can to February 16th; Senate debates bill Thursday night
While government budget approvals are debated to prevent a shut down Friday, DACA residents, Jews and Dreamers sing in the lobby of the Senate.
Wednesday, January 17, 86 rabbis and Jewish community leaders were arrested in the Capitol calling on Congress to pass a clean #DreamActNow. More than a 100 DACA supporters and American Jews lead by Bend the Arc Jewish Action sat in the center of the Russel Building Rotuna. Protesters unite under the moment tag #LetMyPeopleStay (Photo Bend the Arc)
Wednesday, January 17, 86 rabbis and Jewish community leaders were arrested in the Capitol calling on Congress to pass a clean #DreamActNow. More than a 100 DACA supporters and American Jews lead by Bend the Arc Jewish Action sat in the center of the Russel Building Rotuna. Protesters unite under the moment tag #LetMyPeopleStay (Photo Bend the Arc)
Wednesday, January 17, 86 rabbis and Jewish community leaders were arrested in the Capitol calling on Congress to pass a clean #DreamActNow. More than a 100 DACA supporters and American Jews lead by Bend the Arc Jewish Action sat in the center of the Russel Building Rotunda in protest of no DACA solution in sight in either US House. (Photo Bend the Arc)
Wednesday, January 17, 86 rabbis and Jewish community leaders were arrested in the Capitol calling on Congress to pass a clean #DreamActNow. More than a 100 DACA supporters and American Jews lead by Bend the Arc Jewish Action sat in the center of the Russel Building Rotunda in protest of no DACA solution in sight in either US House. (Photo Bend the Arc)
Dreamers stand in front on the Supreme Court to encourage lawmakers to vote on immigration policy in May 2017.
Wednesday, January 17, 86 rabbis and Jewish community leaders were arrested in the Capitol calling on Congress to pass a clean #DreamActNow. More than a 100 DACA supporters and American Jews lead by Bend the Arc Jewish Action sat in the center of the Russel Building Rotunda. (Photo Bend the Arc)
Wednesday, January 17, 86 rabbis and Jewish community leaders were arrested in the Capitol calling on Congress to pass a clean #DreamActNow. More than a 100 DACA supporters and American Jews lead by Bend the Arc Jewish Action sat in the center of the Russel Building Rotunda. (Photo Bend the Arc)
Rights Reserved-Hillsboro Globe; Associated Press David Solimini
Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., speaks to reporters as he walks towards the Senate as Congress moves closer to the funding deadline to avoid a government shutdown on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 18, 2018. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
WASHINGTON — A divided House voted Thursday to prevent a government shutdown after an eleventh-hour deal brought conservatives aboard. However, the GOP lead US Senate faces a gloomy, uphill battle to pass anything before the deadline.
It remains unclear whether lawmakers would be able to find a way to keep federal offices open past a Friday night deadline.While both US Government Houses negotiate, finagle and scurry to put together a budget that can be approved by Friday.
““My focus is not on pleasing a bunch of partisans. My focus is on delivering for soldiers in the field and fixing problems which face our nation – like the impending upheaval to the lives of 800,000 DACA recipients. People in South Carolina and across the nation deserve nothing less.“
— U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina)
The debate between both parties has been whether to include a clean DACA bill or whether or not to tie immigration reforms to the budget bill.
While the Senate and House of Representatives continue to debate, #DreamActNow gathers support from various segments of society.
On Wednesday, January 17, 86 rabbis and Jewish community leaders were arrested in the Capitol calling on Congress to pass a clean #DreamActNow.
Bend the Arc Jewish Action Jews, #DreamActNow! and other DACA supports sang in the lobby rotunda of the Senate Wednesday. Over 100 American Jews and immigrant youth occupied the huge domed rotunda and demonstrated peacefully through song emphatically urging Congress to pass a clean #DreamActNow!
“Today, we came from all across the country to demonstrate what a policy rooted in love could look like. Fighting alongside Dreamers, and putting our own bodies on the line for them, is an expression of our deepest Jewish values. Congress must heed the will of the people and pass a clean Dream Act now.” stated CEO, Stosh Cotler.
Thursday afternoon, the House voted by a near party-line 230-197 vote to approve the legislation which would keep agency doors open and hundreds of thousands of federal employees at work through Feb. 16.
The measure is designed to give White House and congressional bargainers more time to work through disputes on immigration and the budget that they’ve tangled over for months.
House passage was assured after the House Freedom Caucus reached an accord with House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis. The leader of the hard-right group, Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., said Ryan promised future votes on extra defense spending and on a conservative, restrictive immigration bill. Meadows also spoke to President Donald Trump.
Though the impact would initially be spotty — since most agencies would be closed until Monday — the story would be certain to dominate weekend news coverage, and each party would be gambling the public would blame the other.
Congress must act by midnight Friday or the government will begin immediately locking its doors.
Furlough: a temporary stoppage of work with no foreseen date of end
— History.org
In the United States, involuntary furloughs concerning federal government employees may be of a sudden and immediate nature.
In February 2010, when a single Senate objection prevented emergency funding measures from being implemented resulted in 2000 federal workers for the Department of Transportation being immediately furloughed as of March 1, 2010.
The longest such shutdown was December 16, 1995, to January 6, 1996, which affected all non-essential employees, shutting down many services including National Institutes of Health, visa and passport processing, parks, and many others.
In the event of a shutdown, food inspections and other vital services would continue, as would Social Security, other federal benefit programs and most military operations. Thousands of government employees face Federal furlough. (see sidebar)
Most reporting account depict the process of solving both the government budget approval and DACA policies among top lawmakers moving slowly with little sign of a solution.
