McConnell promised Maine Republican Susan Collins that the Senate would act on two Obamacare bills before the end of the year. One would renew cost-sharing payments to insurers that were ended by Trump, and another would set up a form of reinsurance to lower premiums. Many House Republicans are skeptical of the cost-sharing measure in particular, so there’s no guarantee it will get into a final spending bill.
“I committed — and I will keep the commitment — to offering Murray-Alexander and Collins-Nelson to the spending bill later in the week,” McConnell said of the provisions in an interview.
Immigration
A bipartisan group of senators is working on a deal to combine protections against deportation for undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children with a border-security and interior enforcement plan. Republicans say the talks are going well but are almost certain to continue into January.
“That’s a matter to be discussed next year. We have plenty of time to do that,” McConnell said Tuesday on Fox News.
Republican Senator James Lankford, who is participating in the immigration talks, said that a meeting Tuesday between the group and White House Chief of Staff John Kelly yielded progress, but that a final deal combining a border-security package with deportation protections for young immigrants won’t be ready before lawmakers leave for the holiday recess.
“There are too many issues that are outstanding,” he said.
Democratic leaders won’t insist their members uniformly vote against the spending bill if it fails to include protections against deportation, according to a Democratic aide.
This article was provided by Bloomberg News.