WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - House Republicans voted Thursday evening to pass a short-term spending bill and avoid a government shutdown, although the bill's future in the Senate remains in doubt.
The House voted 230 to 197 in favor of the stopgap bill, which would fund the government through February 16th.
The vote largely came down along party lines, with just 6 Democrats voting to pass the bill and only 11 Republicans voting against it.
The spending bill includes a six-year extension of the popular Children's Health Insurance Program and also delays some Obamacare taxes.
House Republican leaders reportedly convinced more conservative lawmakers to vote for the legislation by promising separate votes on increasing military spending and a hard-line immigration bill.
Democratic opposition to the bill largely stemmed from its failure to address protections for young illegal immigrants brought to the country as children.
The issue of protections for the illegal immigrants known as Dreamers could doom the short-term spending bill in the Senate.
While House Republicans were able to pass the bill with a simple majority, Senate rules require the legislation to receive 60 votes.
Democrats indicated Thursday that they have the votes to block the bill in the Senate, although negotiations are ongoing ahead of midnight deadline to avoid a government shutdown.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ken., accused Democrats of bowing to pressure from their far-left base by focusing on an unrelated immigration issue.
'My Democratic colleagues' demands on illegal immigration, at the behest of their far-left base, have crowded out all other important business,' McConnell said. 'Crowded it all out over the issue of illegal immigration.'
He added, 'And now they are threatening to crowd out the needs of veterans, military families, opioid treatment centers, and every other American who relies on the federal government. All over illegal immigration.'
McConnell noted lawmakers have until March to address the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program that protects Dreamers, but Democrats may be wary of giving up the leverage offered by the spending bills.
President Donald Trump has demanded that any DACA bill include funding for his controversial border wall while also ending chain migration and the diversity visa lottery system.
Trump claimed in a post to Twitter early Friday morning that Democrats 'want illegal immigration and weak borders,' saying the country needs more Republican victories in the 2018 midterm elections.
Meanwhile, Democrats have argued the short-term spending bill fails to address urgent priorities for hard-working Americans, including providing certainty for the roughly 700,000 DACA recipients.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., blamed 'complete disarray on the Republican side' for the potential government shutdown.
Schumer has expressed support for a bill funding the government for just a few days in orders to keep both sides at the negotiating table.
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