Biden signs stopgap funding bill to keep government running

By KEVIN FREKING and LISA MASCARO
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden has signed into law the stopgap spending bill that will keep the federal government running through Feb. 18. The White House thanked congressional leaders for their work — they had defused a partisan standoff after Senate Republicans tried to hold off swift passage over federal vaccine mandates. Earlier Friday, Biden said it was worth praising bipartisanship, but “funding the government isn’t a great achievement, it’s the bare minimum of what needs to get done.” The bill keeps the government running for 11 more weeks, generally at current spending levels, while adding $7 billion to aid Afghanistan evacuees.