The Truth About the Budget, From Gun Control to the Border Wall

• March 29 2018
• Sahil Kapur

Some of the wins in the $1.3 trillion bill that both parties crowed about look a little thin in the harsh light of day. What they said and what they actually passed.

There’s less than meets the eye to some of the victories Republicans and Democrats have claimed after passing the $1.3 trillion omnibus spending bill.
 
The Border Wall
 
What Republicans say: The measure makes a down payment on President Trump’s promised southern border wall, to the tune of $1.6 billion in funding.
 
What the bill says: Some of the money in the bill may be used for planning the development of a wall. But the law limits any construction of a physical barrier to fencing and levees.
 
Gateway Tunnel Project
 
What Northeastern lawmakers say: Amtrak funding of $540 million could be used for the tunnel connecting New York and New Jersey, along with $2.9 billion in grant money the project could bid on.
 
What the bill says: No money is specifically earmarked for Gateway, which Trump opposes, and the $2.9 billion is subject to approval by the Department of Transportation.
 
Gun Control
 
Proponents such as Republican Senator John Cornyn of Texas: By adding the Fix NICS Act to the spending bill, Congress took a rare step to combat gun violence.
 
What the bill says: The act makes no changes to gun laws; it merely gives agencies an incentive to comply with existing rules and report information to the background-check system.
 
“You want to make these win-win situations where everybody can talk about what they got and not how they got screwed.” —Tom Davis, former Republican congressman from Virginia