House nears OK of government-wide $1.1T budget
Source: AP-EXCITE
By ALAN FRAM
WASHINGTON (AP) - Party leaders pushed a massive $1.1 trillion spending bill for this year toward House passage on Wednesday, shunning the turmoil of recent budget clashes with a compromise financing everything from airports to war costs and brimming with victories and setbacks for both parties.
The huge bill furnishes the fine print - 1,582 pages of it - for the bipartisan pact approved in December that set overall spending levels for the next couple of years. With lawmakers eager to avoid an election-year replay of last fall's widely unpopular 16-day federal shutdown, there was little suspense about the bill's fate.
Approving the legislation "is showing the American people we actually are capable of working in a bipartisan manner," said Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla. He praised the bill for holding down spending and said passage would be "the responsible thing to do. It's the thoughtful thing to do."
By its sheer size and detail, the measure had plenty for liberals and conservatives to dislike. Some Democrats said they would support it but only reluctantly, complaining that despite some increases, spending for education, health and other programs would still be too low.
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