The package resembled a bipartisan plan that was abandoned earlier this week after an online fusillade from Trump and his billionaire adviser Elon Musk, who said it contained too many unrelated provisions.
Most of those elements were struck from the Bill – including a provision limiting investments in China that Democrats said would conflict with Musk’s interests there.
“He clearly does not want to answer questions about how much he plans to expand his businesses in China and how many American technologies he plans to sell,” Democratic Representative Rosa DeLauro said on the House floor.
Musk, the world’s richest person, has been tasked by Trump to head a budget-cutting task force but holds no official position in Washington.
The Bill also left out Trump’s demand to raise the nation’s debt ceiling, which was resoundingly rejected by the House – including 38 Republicans – on Thursday.
The federal government spent roughly US$6.2 trillion last year and has more than US$36 trillion in debt, and Congress will need to act to authorise further borrowing by the middle of next year.
Representative Steve Scalise, the No 2 House Republican, said lawmakers had been in touch with Trump but did not say whether he supported the new plan.
Sources said the White House has alerted government agencies to prepare for an imminent shutdown. The federal government last shut down for 35 days during Trump’s first White House term over a dispute about border security.
Previous fights over the debt ceiling have spooked financial markets, as a US government default would send credit shocks around the world.
The limit has been suspended under an agreement that technically expires on Jan 1, though lawmakers likely would not have had to tackle the issue before the spring.
Source: CNA
