Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/26211
8A – Daily News – Wednesday, March 2, 2011 Shutdown averted, $4B cuts WASHINGTON (AP) — The House passed emer- gency short-term legislation Tuesday to cut federal spending by $4 billion and avert a government shut- down. Senate Democrats agreed to follow suit, hand- ing Republicans an early victory in their drive to rein in government. The bill that cleared the House on a bipartisan vote of 335-91 eliminates the threat of a shutdown on March 4, when existing funding authority expires. At the same time, it creates a compressed two-week timeframe for the White House and lawmakers to engage in what looms as a highly contentious negotia- tion on a follow-up bill to set spending levels through the Sept. 30 end of the fiscal year. In the Senate, Majority Leader Harry Reid said the short-term bill would win approval and be ready for President Barack Obama’s signature within 48 hours. ‘‘We’ll pass this and then look at funding the govern- ment on a long-term basis,’’ said the Nevada Democrat. There was no immediate reaction from the White House, which earlier in the day called publicly for an interim measure of up to five weeks. House Republicans were more eager to draw attention to the bill that was passing with the acquies- cence of the White House and Democrats than to the challenge yet ahead. ‘‘Now that congression- al Democrats and the administration have expressed an openness for spending cuts, the momen- tum is there for a long-term measure that starts to final- ly get our fiscal house in order,’’ said Majority Leader Eric Cantor of Vir- ginia. ‘‘Changing the culture of borrowing and spending in Washington is no small feat, but I am heartened by today’s action and it shows that Republicans have start- reckless cuts was a reach back to the earlier measure, written to satisfy 87 first- term conservative Republi- cans. It called for $61 bil- lion in cuts while funding the government through Sept. 30, and would also have blocked enactment of proposed federal regula- tions on an array of private industries and prohibited the use of funds to imple- ment the year-old health care law. ed to make the meaningful changes that voters called for in the last election.’’ The GOP won control of the House and gained seats in the Senate last fall with the backing of tea party activists demanding deep cuts in federal spending and other steps to reduce the federal government. On the House floor, Democrats sharply attacked Republicans in the run-up to the vote, but much of their criticism was aimed at an earlier $61 billion pack- age of spending cuts that had cleared on a party-line vote. ‘‘The sooner we can agree on a long-term pack- age of smart cuts — not reckless, arbitrary, job- destroying cuts — the sooner we can stop funding the government in disrup- tive two-week increments that undermine efficiency and spread economic uncertainty,’’ said Rep. Steny Hoyer of Maryland, second-ranking in the Democratic leadership. When it came time to vote, Democrats split, 104 in favor and 85 against. The leadership was similarly divided, Hoyer supporting the legislation and the party’s leader, Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California, opposed. Republicans voted 231- 6 in favor. Hoyer’s reference to Confronted with a veto threat by Obama and strong opposition in the Senate, House Republicans announced quickly they would follow up with the interim two-week bill to avoid a shutdown while buying more time for com- promise talks. As such, the two-week measure is loaded with symbolism, although the $4 billion in cuts are not particularly controversial. About $2.7 billion was ticketed for earmarked pro- jects, and the balance for education and other pro- grams that Obama had pro- posed terminating or reducing next year. The day’s events marked the culmination of a slow-motion retreat on the part of Senate Democ- rats, who had hoped to use the past few weeks to make the case that House Repub- licans are radicals bent on closing down the govern- ment. As recently as 10 days ago, Senate Democrats sup- ported a spending freeze at current levels through the end of the fiscal year, while making it known some members of the rank and file wanted to make cuts. Last Thursday, as House Republicans made known their plan for the short-term bill with $4 bil- lion in relatively non-con- troversial cuts, the Senate Democrats said they were opposed. They said they would agree to reductions only in a bill that carried the government through Sept. 30.