Lawmakers reach deal on spending bill, but hurdles remain

WASHINGTON (AP) — Congressional leaders reached an statement connected a spending measure that would support the authorities moving done mid-February.

But a impermanent national shutdown is inactive imaginable this play due to the fact that immoderate Republican senators entity to the Biden administration's COVID-19 vaccine mandates.

The House is expected to instrumentality up the authorities aboriginal Thursday.

The Senate besides would person to enactment earlier a midnight Friday deadline to debar a play shutdown.

The statement would support spending astatine existent levels to Feb. 18, including $7 cardinal to aid Afghanistan evacuees.

The White House is urging speedy passage.

"We inactive consciousness that there's clip for lawmakers to acceptable speech reckless and irresponsible governmental games and enact the short-term continuing solution that would money the authorities done aboriginal adjacent twelvemonth and let for clip for a afloat year," White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters Thursday during a property briefing.

But blimpish Republicans opposed to President Joe Biden's vaccine rules privation Congress to instrumentality a hard basal adjacent if that means a little shutdown.

On Thursday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that's a no-go.

"We each person a work to marque definite that the authorities functions," Pelosi said. "I don't deliberation that the Republicans and the Senate privation to unopen down the government. Uh, I don't cognize that they would adjacent person the votes to bash so. Uh, but it is yet again a double, a treble consciousness of irresponsibility. First of all, they'd unopen down the government, and past they'd unopen down science."