A House-approved bill that would fund the U.S. military during the ongoing federal government shutdown failed to pass the Senate in a procedural vote on Thursday.
The House bill required at least 60 votes in the 100-member Senate to advance because of the chamber’s filibuster rules.
The final vote was 50-44, with three Democrats joining most Republicans in voting “aye.”
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., voted against the bill solely as a tactic to allow him to quickly revive the effort to fund the Pentagon during the shutdown.
The vote came hours after a Senate bill to fund the entire government failed.
Most Democrats in the House opposed the defense funding bill when it was voted on in July.
Minnesota Rep. Betty McCollum, the top Democrat on the House panel overseeing military funding, opposed the bill, noting it eliminates assistance to Ukraine, rolls back vaccine requirements, and limits service members’ access to abortions, among other things.
Thune blasted Senate Democrats for opposing the bill on Thursday.
“Filibustering defense appropriations bill, which is a bill which, like I said, should get 80 plus votes on the floor, suggests a level of dysfunction on their side right now that I can’t explain,” Thune said.
“The government shutdown is one aspect of this, for sure. But, you know, we’re trying to continue to do business here.”
But Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said, “I will vote yes on a military appropriations bill to pay our men and women in uniform, but if it has all of the House poison pills, no.”
Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, a New Hampshire Democrat who voted for the bill, said, “I believe it is critical that the Senate and Congress return to a bipartisan appropriations approach and try to begin rebuilding trust.”
“This vote would allow us to consider Senate appropriations bills which were passed out of committee with overwhelming bipartisan support,” Shaheen said.
“The bipartisan Senate appropriations defense bill will protect our national security and would ensure our men and women in uniform receive pay and benefits,” she said.
“We can, and should, try to move forward on a bipartisan appropriations process even as we work to prevent tens of millions of Americans from seeing a massive spike in their health insurance premiums in the coming days.”
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