Congress Passes Budget, Excludes Ukraine Aid to Prevent Shutdown

Congress passed a short-term funding bill to avoid a government shutdown, but dropped additional support for Ukraine from the bill. The stopgap measure ensures troops and Defense Department employees will continue receiving their paychecks and avoids furloughing civilian workers. However, this raises questions about Congress' ability to pass additional Ukraine assistance. The Defense Department no longer has funds for Ukraine aid, and the $1.5 billion left to backfill U.S. stockpiles of weapons sent to Kyiv expires on September 30. The House passed the funding bill in a 335-91 vote, and the Senate passed it in an 88-9 vote.