President Trump has shocked pretty much the entire establishment by signing off on the $1.3 trillion spending bill that he earlier threatened to veto. The signing means that another government shutdown will be avoided. But all is not wine and roses with The Donald stating publically that he will “never again” sign a bill like this that has neither had time for full scrutiny nor refuses to address key issues.
Just a short time earlier, the president sent Washington into a tailspin of doubt when he Tweeted that he was considering a veto on the bill as it failed to address both DACA recipients and a complete budget for The Wall. He scored a very clear political point by stating that the Democrats did not even mention the more than 700,000 “Dreamers” who are uncertain about their future immigration status.
Getting it Signed
The president is clearly angry with how little attention has been given to examining the bill and has vented his frustration at Republicans and Democrats in Congress for their lack of attention. He said:
"There are a lot of things I'm unhappy about with this bill… As a matter of national security, I’ve signed this omnibus budget bill. There are a lot of things that we shouldn't have had in this bill, but were in a sense forced to if we want to build our military.”
“I say to Congress, I will never sign another bill like this again,” he said. “I'm not going to do it again. Nobody read it. It's only hours old. Some people don't even know what’s in it.”
Trump appears to have read the public mood just right on this. Conservative lawmakers are unhappy with the price tag that will further add to the national debt and voters from both parties each have something to grouse about.
What’s Included?
The Wall – While the president didn’t get full funding, he did at least get a guaranteed $1.5 billion to get construction off the ground and make necessary repairs.
NCIS Fix – Additional funding will be provided to state agencies that comply with the criminal background checks regulations for firearm purchases.
“Armed Teachers” – Although not phrased as such, funding will be given to properly train school officials (including weapons training?) to deal with shooting incidents and added security measures for schools.
Chucky’s Tunnel – Chuck Schumer managed to wrangle partial funds to build a tunnel under the Hudson River.
Military Funding – As well as actual cash for the bolstering of the armed forces, military personnel will also get a much-needed pay rise.
What’s Not Included
DACA Fix – The Democrats appear to have completely forgotten about their promises to DACA recipients who, in fact, are not even mentioned in the entire bill.
Border Funds – President Trump requested additional spending to hire hundreds of new border patrol agents and immigration agents.
A 2,000-page spending bill that lawmakers had less than 24- hours to go through is a poor kind of politics. President Trump is right to criticize those responsible and should certainly hold them accountable for any mistakes that come about as a result of this mammoth spending package.
The real losers here are the taxpayer who eventually foots the bill and the Democrats who are running for re-election. Just a short time ago, they were willing to shut down the nation to protect the Dreamers, but have now abandoned them in favor of the Parkland, FLA anti-gun kids, and Schumer’s tunnel. Preparation for the next spending bill needs to start now, and it looks like, with Donald Trump’s caustic reaction, he has already fired the starting pistol.
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