RACE TO THE FINISH

Senate Passes $1.7 Trillion Mega Omnibus Bill

The race to pass the bill hit several road bumps, the largest from Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT).

The Senate approved a bipartisan $1.7 trillion omnibus spending bill Thursday that will continue funding the federal government, increase spending for the military and domestic programs, as well as sustain financial support to Ukraine. The bill, which ran more than 4,000 pages long, included a dizzying array of lawmakers’ pet projects and causes, from funding for fishing to a ban on TikTok for government employees and a revamp of an election law Donald Trump tried to use to overturn the 2020 election. The bill, which passed the Senate 68-29, will go to the House, who may pass it as early as Thursday before Congress breaks for the holidays and Republicans regain control of the House. The race to pass the bill in time for lawmakers to get home before a major winter storm hit several road bumps, the largest from Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT), who demanded a vote on an amendment that would tie some of the Department of Homeland Security’s funding to a continuation of Title 42, a pandemic-era policy that allowed the U.S. to expel migrants at the border. A vote to maintain Title 42 was also cast but both it and Lee’s amendment failed.