US: Senate to vote to reopen govt

Senate Majority leader Mitch McConnell struck an agreement with Minority leader Chuck Schumer to vote on the two proposals suggested to reopen the government which has been shut partially for over a month now.

According to The Hill, the two votes will take place on Thursday. With Republicans having a 53-47 majority, the decision still hangs in balance as there is no guarantee that either measure will pass the Senate.

"The opportunity to end all this is staring us right in the face … All that needs to happen is for our Democratic colleagues to agree that it's time to put the country ahead of politics, take yes for an answer and vote to put this standoff behind us," McConnell said.

The funding bills require 60 votes for passage.

The first voting will be on the measure that was suggested by US President Donald Trump in which he proposed legal protections for some immigrants for three years in exchange for 5.7 billion USD for a border wall.

It seems difficult that the bill will manage to get support from Democrats to reach the 60 vote count and even if it does win in the Senate, Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the House will not consider it.

The second proposal states that the Senate will consider the resolution to reopen the government for another three weeks without any additional border wall money. This bill, however, might not get enough votes from Republicans to reach the 60-vote threshold.

If the bill manages to make its way through the Senate, it will be redundant as Trump has threatened to veto any spending measure that does not include 5.7 billion USD for a wall.

Nancy Pelosi said, "Senate Republicans need to re-open the government, not continue their complicity in the Trump Shutdown with a vote for the President's unacceptable border and immigration schemes that only increase the chaos and suffering at the border. The Senate GOP and President Trump must stop holding the American people hostage, and re-open government immediately.