The US Senate approves a bill to end the government shutdown

The US Senate has approved a settlement that would end the longest government shutdown in US history, putting an end to the weeks-long stalemate that has disrupted food aid to millions of citizens, left hundreds of thousands of government employees without salaries, and disrupted air traffic.

Approval came by a vote of 60 to 40, with support from a majority of Republicans in the House and eight Democrats who tried in vain to tie government funding to health care allocations that are scheduled to expire at the end of the year. Although the agreement paves the way for a vote on those allocations in December, it does not guarantee their continuation.

The agreement would restore funding to federal agencies that lawmakers allowed to expire on October 1. It would also stall President Donald Trump’s drive to shrink the federal workforce and prevent any layoffs through January 30.

The agreement will then move to the Republican-controlled House of Representatives, where Speaker Mike Johnson said he wants to ratify it tomorrow, Wednesday, and send it to Trump to sign it into law. Trump described the agreement as “very good.”

The funding will be extended until January 30, leaving the federal government currently on track to continue adding about $1.8 trillion annually to its $38 trillion debt.

Trump unilaterally canceled billions of dollars in spending and cut federal payrolls for hundreds of thousands of workers, bypassing Congress’ constitutional authority in fiscal matters.

These actions violated previous spending laws passed by Congress.