President Donald Trump indicated in a tweet that he supports a two-year budget deal brokered by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., that would stave off a government shutdown set to begin after Feb. 8.
"The Budget Agreement today is so important for our great Military. It ends the dangerous sequester and gives Secretary Mattis what he needs to keep America Great," Trump wrote in the tweet. "Republicans and Democrats must support our troops and support this Bill!"
White House officials were more circumspect, saying they "want to see the final components." Press Secretary Sarah Sanders indicated that the proposal includes a provision that would increase the government's borrowing authority, something that the Congressional Budget office has said must happen within weeks. The deal "increases the debt ceiling to March of 2019, which moves us away from crisis-to-crisis budgeting," Sanders told reporters.
Rep. Chris Collins, R-N.Y., confirmed to The New York Times that the debt ceiling hike is included in the bill. But neither McConnell nor Schumer discussed it on the Senate floor when they outlined the pact.
Among other provisions, the measure lifts caps on defense spending while allocating money for disaster relief and efforts to address opioid addiction.
"This bill is the product of extensive negotiations among congressional leaders and the White House," McConnell said on the Senate floor. "No one would suggest it is perfect, but we worked hard to find common ground."
The agreement was announced as House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi delivered a marathon address on the floor of the chamber, stating that she could not support a funding bill that did not include protections for Dreamers — undocumented individuals who were brought to the U.S. as children and beneficiaries of an Obama-era program that shielded them from deportation. Pelosi called on House Speaker Paul Ryan to follow McConnell's lead on immigration.
"The bill I move to, which will not have underlying immigration text, will have an amendment process which will ensure a level playing field at the outset," McConnell said of his plans for an immigration bill, a compromise he brokered with Democrats to end the most recent government shutdown. "While I obviously cannot guarantee any outcome … I can ensure the process is fair to all sides, and that is what I intend to do."
Schumer echoed McConnell's praise of bipartisan compromise.
"It's been a painstaking and monthslong process," Schumer said on the Senate floor. "At the end of the day, I believe we have reached a budget deal that neither side loves but both sides can be proud of."
