The Senate has just voted to block a bill that will fund most of the government through the end of September, with approximately 36 hours left to avoid a partial shutdown.
Just 45 senators, all Republicans, voted to advance House-passed bills funding the Pentagon and Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, Transportation and Housing and Urban Development.
Republicans Ted Budd of North Carolina, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, Mike Lee of Utah, Rand Paul of Kentucky, Ashley Moody and Rick Scott of Florida, Majority Leader John Thune of South Dakota, and Tommy Tuberville of Alabama voted against advancing the bill.
Thune voted “no” to satisfy a procedural requirement that would allow him to bring the bill again.
Democrats had vowed to block the bills without Republicans committing to reforming Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) practices.
