MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

US Congress agrees on spending bill, with no funds for the Mexico border wall

The bipartisan deal boosts military spending but does not include funding for President Donald Trump's proposed wall on the Mexico border, they say.

Congressional negotiators have reached an agreement on a spending bill to keep the Unites States government running until 30 September, media report. The bipartisan deal boosts military spending but does not include funding for President Donald Trump's proposed wall on the Mexico border, they say.

 The reported US$1 trillion deal needs to be approved by lawmakers. Last Friday Congress approved a stop-gap spending bill that averted a government shutdown at midnight on that day. That gave Congress one more week to work out federal spending over the last five months of the fiscal year.

Lawmakers are expected to vote on the package in the coming days. The failure to act would have closed national parks and monuments and laid off federal employees. The last shutdown, in 2013, lasted for 17 days.

Details of the agreement on a spending bill are yet to be made public. However, AP news agency says it gives President Donald Trump a US$15bn down payment on his request to strengthen the military and another US$1.5bn for border security.

However White House proposals to cut popular programs, such as funding medical research and community developments grants - were rejected. There were a number of key disputes during tense negotiations, and Republicans - who control the Congress - were forced to make concessions.

President Trump earlier had to yield to Democratic demands not to include funding for the proposed wall on the US-Mexico border in the spending bill. Another concession was over Obamacare, formally known as the Affordable Care Act.

President Trump made scrapping it a key campaign pledge, but divisions among Republicans have so far prevented attempts to get his own health plan through Congress.