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2022.12.30 07:29 GMT+8

Biden signs $1.7-trillion bill funding government operations

Updated 2022.12.30 11:12 GMT+8
CGTN

U.S. President Joe Biden delivers a Christmas address at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., December 22, 2022. /CFP

U.S. President Joe Biden on Thursday signed a $1.7-trillion government funding bill into law, said the White House.

The legislation will keep the federal government operating through the end of the federal budget year in September 2023, and provide tens of billions of dollars in new aid to Ukraine.

Biden had until late Friday to sign the bill to avoid a partial government shutdown.

The Democratic-controlled House passed the bill 225-201 just before Christmas. The House vote came a day after the Senate, also led by Democrats, voted 68-29 to pass the bill with significantly more Republican support.

Kevin McCarthy, the Republican leader in the U.S. House of Representatives, argued during floor debate that the bill spends too much and does too little to curb illegal immigration and the flow of fentanyl into the U.S. from Mexico.

“This is a monstrosity that is one of the most shameful acts I’ve ever seen in this body,” McCarthy said of the legislation.

The funding bill includes a roughly six percent increase in spending for domestic initiatives, to $772.5 billion. Spending on defense programs will increase by about 10 percent, to $858 billion.

(With input from AP)

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