The Senate took its first step Tuesday toward passing a nearly $1.7 trillion omnibus spending package needed before Christmas Eve to avert a partial government shutdown.
Senators voted 70-25 to adopt the motion to proceed to a shell bill for the long-awaited measure, a 4,155-page behemoth that encompasses the dozen annual spending bills for every federal agency, plus supplemental aid for the war in Ukraine and natural disaster victims.
It also includes an extensive set of unrelated policies such as horse-racing industry rules and a TikTok ban on government-issued devices.
