Parties reach basic agreement in US budget dispute

Nearly two weeks before another deadline expires, divided party leaders in the US Congress have reached a basic agreement on the budget dispute.

Yesterday, the Republican leader in the House of Representatives, Mike Johnson, and the Democratic majority leader in the US Senate, Chuck Schumer, agreed on a ceiling of $1,590 billion (1,455.91 billion euros) for the current budget year. This now allows the Committee's deliberations to begin.

A maximum of two values ​​were agreed upon

In a letter to MPs, Johnson confirmed that significant spending cuts had been achieved compared to previous planning. In particular, emergency spending was restricted, “which could save taxpayers $200 billion over the next decade.”

Specifically, two caps were agreed upon: $886 billion for defense spending and $704 billion for all remaining federal spending. The exact distribution must now be determined by the responsible committees in the House and Senate.

Additional Republican demands were excluded

What has been left out are additional political demands or – in Democratic terminology – “poison pills” through which opposition Republicans want to force a change in government policy – ​​for example in the field of immigration. Therefore, reaching an actual agreement on the budget conflict remains in doubt.

In mid-November, the two houses of Parliament had already reached a preliminary agreement, but this only delayed the solution for two months. If a decision is not made by January 19, the United States will face a government shutdown because there will be no additional government spending.