Senate unveils spending bill that avoids shutdown before election

A new short-term federal spending bill was unveiled Sunday that would fund federal agencies into early December and prevent lawmakers up for reelection from facing voters in the midst of another government shutdown battle. 

Big picture view:

The Senate proposal would mostly maintain similar funding levels to where they are now and would allow the federal government to keep the lights on through December 11. If Congress fails to act, funding would expire on September 30, which is the end of the fiscal year. Senators are expected to vote on the bill this week before heading into their August recess.

What's next:

If approved by the Senate, the measure would still need to pass the House. Representatives signed off on their own spending bill already, but it did not include some exceptions that the White House wanted to include. Senators spent recent days negotiating over those exceptions.

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What they're saying:

Senate Majority Leader John Thune called the short-term spending bill his top priority before senators go on break. He pointed out that Americans have undergone two record-breaking shutdown fights in the past ten months and added, "We need to ensure that they do not face a third."

The other side:

Democrats, who are in the minority in both chambers, highlighted that the new bill does not include the White House’s request for $1 billion for the creation of "Trump-class" battleships. It also contains language, they say, that prevents funds from being transferred from other programs to the Border Patrol.

PoliticsU.S.