Vice President Mike Pence broke the tie in a nail-biting US Senate vote to move ahead with the spending bill funding the border wall. Impasse between Democrats and President Donald Trump threatens to shut down the government.
There were 47 votes in favor and 47 against when Pence cast the decisive vote on Friday evening. The floor had stayed open for over five hours, as senators rushed back to Washington, DC to voice their opinion on the measure passed in the House of Representatives the day before, allocating $5.7 billion to fund the border wall. It was reportedly the longest floor vote in modern Senate history.
Democrats, however, remain opposed to any funding for Trump’s wall proposal, now or ever.
“The wall does not have 60 votes, let alone 50 votes,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-New York) said on the floor after the vote.
Also on rt.com Democrats & Republicans play blame game as Christmas shutdown looms
The continuing resolution would require the approval of 60 senators, and the Republicans currently hold 51 seats. Democrat and Republican leadership did agree, however, that the next roll call will be on the actual spending bill, rather than another procedural vote.
Less than six hours remain before the congressionally approved funding for about a quarter of US government functions runs out, leaving approximately 800,000 federal workers in a lurch on the weekend before the Christmas holiday.
If you like this story, share it with a friend!
Comments are closed.