Senate agrees to end shutdown, sends bill to House

WASHINGTON—Senate leaders struck a deal Monday to end the three-day government shutdown in exchange for immigration legislation guarantees. Senate Democrats agreed to approve a measure that would fund the government through Feb. 8 based on a commitment from Republicans to hold an immigration vote. The upper chamber voted 81-18 to break the stalemate. The House of Representatives plans to take up the measure Monday afternoon for final passage. Many Democrats previously held their votes on the spending bill in an attempt to force action on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said he had confidence the process agreed to Monday “will be neutral and fair to all sides. We expect that a bipartisan bill on DACA will receive fair consideration and an up-or-down vote on the floor.” But liberal groups quickly jumped to criticize Democrats for caving. Ilya Sheyman, executive director of MoveOn.org Political Action, said in a statement that Schumer agreed to a bad and “outrageous deal.” Democrats expressed confidence Monday that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., would schedule a vote on a DACA fix they could sign on to. But House leaders have not agreed yet to vote on a bipartisan solution. The Senate passed comprehensive immigration reform legislation in 2013, but House Republicans later killed the bill.