Nearly two weeks before another deadline expires, divided party leaders in the US Congress have reached a key agreement in the budget dispute.
The Republican leader of the House of Representatives, Mike Johnson, and the Democratic majority leader in the US Senate, Chuck Schumer, today reached an agreement on a maximum limit of 1,590 billion dollars (1,455.91 billion euros) for the current budget year. This now allows committee deliberations to begin.
Two maximum values agreed
In a letter to MPs, Johnson emphasized that significant spending cuts had been achieved compared to previous planning. In particular, emergency spending was restricted, “which could save taxpayers $200 billion over the next decade.”
Specifically, two maximums were agreed upon: $886 billion for defense spending and $704 billion for all other federal spending. The exact distribution must now be determined by the responsible committees in the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate.
Additional Republican demands excluded
What was excluded were additional political demands or – in Democratic terminology – “poison pills” with which opposition Republicans want to force a change in government policy – for example in the area of migration. Therefore, a real agreement on the budget conflict remains questionable.
By mid-November, the two chambers of parliament had already reached a preliminary agreement, but this only delayed the solution for a good two months. If there is no decision by January 19th, the US will face a government shutdown because no more government spending will be possible.