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House passes bill to avoid shutdown

After settling an impasse with the White House over abortion restrictions and spending levels, the House voted 371-42 for a stopgap measure that would temporarily finance dozens of federal agencies, though at lower levels than 1995. The Senate was expected to approve the legislation today.

"Let's quit wasting the taxpayers' money," said House Appropriations Committee Chairman Bob Livingston (R-La.), the GOP's rallying cry all year. But reflecting his party's new, less confrontational mode, he added, "Let's keep the government open."

"We're satisfied that a lot of give-and-take has produced an agreement the president can live with," White House spokesman Mike McCurry said.

Lawmakers had faced a deadline tonight that if breached would see civil servants furloughed for an embarrassing third time since November.

After taking a drubbing in public opinion polls for their confrontational tactics, Republicans were no longer vowing to halt government's most basic functions unless their demands for a balanced budget in seven years were met. With this fall's elections on their minds, both sides seemed to feel the best path, for now, was to settle immediate differences and save their most stubborn disputes over Medicare, Medicaid and welfare until next year.

But all the embers from the budget inferno were not dead. Despite an apparent truce over extending the debt limit and pressure from Wall Street to do so, the two sides fenced over how it would be accomplished.

"Since I gave the State of the Union address, there have been some encouraging things said by the congressional leaders," Clinton told mayors visiting the White House, continuing the positive tone he took in that speech. "But I would remind you that we still have some roadblocks in the way that I think need to be cleared away."

For the next seven weeks, the stopgap spending measure would finance many agencies whose 1996 budgets are incomplete, including the departments of Veterans Affairs, Interior and Labor and the Environmental Protection Agency. Most would receive less than they got in 1995, and 10 minor programs -- such as money for the native Hawaiian and Alaska native cultural arts -- would be eliminated. None of Clinton's major initiatives would be cut below 75 percent of last year's levels.

``Nobody wants to close down the government,'' said House Appropriations Committee Chairman Bob Livingston, R-La., reflecting GOP leaders' new strategy of disavowing confrontation as a tool for pressing their budget ideology.

The measure included $12 billion for foreign aid for the rest of the fiscal year.

In a compromise between conservatives and abortion-rights lawmakers, the measure would block U.S. funds to international family planning programs, but only until July. After that, the money could be dispersed, though at just 65 percent of last year's levels. The program would thus spend $367 million over the next year and a half.

It also would limit embryo research.

In addition, travel restrictions would be slapped on many Cabinet officers, a clear poke at the controversial trips of Energy Secretary Hazel O'Leary and Commerce Secretary Ron Brown. And in a symbolic win for the GOP's effort to shrink government, congressional officials were ordered to sell a House office building.

The bill would also provide, for the first time, that federal workers could be furloughed or laid off by agencies looking for savings. During the first two shutdowns, furloughs only occurred in programs that had no spending authority.

Separately, there was continued support for the idea both sides embraced Wednesday of putting limited spending and tax cuts onto a measure that would extend the government's debt limit. Without that bill, the administration has predicted that by March 1, Treasury would be unable to pay federal obligations for the first time in history -- which could cause widespread financial disruptions.

A day after House Speaker Newt Gingrich, R-Ga., said he hoped the debt-limit measure could also carry $100 billion in spending cuts and $29 billion in tax reductions, White House chief of staff Leon Panetta said he did not know what was achievable.

But Panetta said talks at a staff level could begin Friday. And hoping to wrest the deficit-cutting mantle from Republicans, he continued to insist that the administration preferred a deal on a balanced budget, not just modest savings.

``That really ought to be our first priority,'' he said. ``That's what we promised the American people and we ought to deliver on that promise.''

For their part, Republicans tried to soothe concerns that they would spark a stalemate that could cause a federal default.

``I understand our responsibility on the debt ceiling and know we have to raise the debt ceiling,'' said House Majority Whip Tom DeLay, R-Texas.

But they insisted they would spend the rest of the year pressing Clinton to accept as many budget cuts as possible, including on the debt-limit measure.

Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin insisted that the debt limit be extended far enough so it ``can get out beyond this election year.'' But Republicans were undecided whether, instead, it should be done for a shorter period to keep pressure on Clinton.

Panetta and Rubin met with moderate Senate Democrats and Republicans and urged them to seek support for a full-blown balanced-budget plan. Afterward, Sen. John Breaux, D-La., said the moderates would seek enough votes to push such a package through the Senate, but conceded that their chances of success were ``less than 50-50.''