It's all over now except for the politicking. The government will remain open throughout 2016, Republicans having forfeited every opportunity for a shutdown by agreeing to raise the debt ceiling in the deal brokered by John Boehner as he departed Congress and now by funding government until October. After quick work by the House this morning to pass the spending bill, the Senate immediately took up both the spending bill and the tax bill the House passed yesterday afternoon. As a combined measure in the Senate, it passed 65-33, and it's on its way to President Obama for his signature.
While the legislation is riddled with measures both parties considered unsavory, lawmakers were able to reach a final deal that included policies each party could point to as victories.
Arguably the biggest win for Republicans came in the attachment of a provision lifting the 40-year-old ban on crude oil exports. In exchange, Democrats locked down five-year phaseouts of wind and solar production and investment tax credits, a three-year reauthorization of the Land and Water Conservation Fund, and no "poison pill" riders from Republicans attacking the administration's environmental policies. […]
The omnibus, a vehicle both parties like to use to cram through last-minute priorities, also included a critical provision for 9/11 first responders. Inclusion of the $8 billion permanent renewal of the 9/11 health treatment program required much persuasion from dedicated first responders, comedian Jon Stewart and Democrats. In both chambers, talks about finding pay-fors for the program went down to the wire.
The two parties also agreed to add to the omnibus a bill to tighten the visa waiver program and an intelligence programs authorization act.
Considering what Republicans wanted but did not get out of this bill—Planned Parenthood defunding, Obamacare repeal, banning Syrian and Iraqi refugees, killing net neutrality, further restricting abortion rights, gutting the Dodd-Frank financial reforms, etc.—it is on the whole a better package than it promised to be a month ago. That probably means Republicans are going to be doubly obnoxious and obstructionist in the new year, but at least they won't be able to shut down the government.