WASHINGTON — The Senate’s Republican and Democratic leaders said Tuesday they were on the verge of reaching a sweeping budget agreement that could break a four-month spending stalemate that has gripped Washington.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., both declined to detail their talks and said no deal has been finalized. But they both suggested a breakthrough was imminent.
"I’m optimistic that very soon we’ll be able to reach an agreement," McConnell told reporters.
Schumer said he and McConnell had agreed to lift the tight budget caps that limit how much Congress can provide for defense and non-defense domestic programs alike. Republicans have been pushing for a major increase in defense spending. Democrats said they would sign off on that if they got a similar boost for domestic programs like health care and education.
“We don’t want to just do one and leave the other behind,” Schumer said. “The two don’t conflict with each other.”
While Schumer declined to offer specifics, he and other Senate Democrats said the agreement would include increased spending for at least three domestic priorities: infrastructure, veterans’ health care, and combating the opioid epidemic.
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