Lawmakers in the U.S. Senate work to avoid a government shutdown, and a Central Florida group seeks to increase state funding for the arts.

Senate passes 6-month funding bill hours before shutdown deadline

The Senate passed a six-month spending bill on Friday hours before a government shutdown, overcoming sharp Democratic opposition to the measure and sending it to President Donald Trump to be signed into law.

The vote was 54-46. Democrats voiced frustration that Republicans went ahead with a measure they said included little input from them, and one they viewed as shortchanging key priorities such as health care and housing assistance. But in the end, some of them viewed a shutdown as a worse outcome and supported Democratic leader Chuck Schumer's effort to allow the bill to come to a final vote.

Democrats were confronted with two painful options: allowing passage of a bill they believe gives President Donald Trump vast discretion on spending decisions or voting no and letting a funding lapse ensue.

Schumer gave members of his caucus days to vent their frustration about the options before them, but abruptly switched course and made clear on the eve of voting that he will not allow a government shutdown. His move outraged many in the party who want to fight the Trump agenda, but gave senators room to side with Republicans and allow the continuing resolution, often described as a CR, to advance.

Democrats from all corners looked to pressure senators to kill the bill. House members wrote letters, posted on social media and held press conferences in the hours before the vote.

"The American people sent Democrats to Congress to fight against Republican dysfunction and chaos," said a letter from 66 House Democrats to Schumer.

House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries and his team dashed back to the Capitol urging senators to block the bill and negotiate a true compromise with Republicans.

Some Democrats also argued that Republicans would take the blame for a shutdown, given they controlled all the levers of power in Congress and the White House.

"If you refuse to put forward an offer that includes any Democratic input and you don't get Democratic votes, that's on Republicans," said Sen. Patty Murray, the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee.

In contrast, Schumer picked up one unexpected nod of support — from Trump himself, who just a day earlier was gearing up to blame Democrats for any shutdown.

"Congratulations to Chuck Schumer for doing the right thing — Took 'guts' and courage!" the president posted on his social media account.

Schumer has acknowledged the difficult choice he faced, but insisted Democrats would not allow a government shutdown and warned of the havoc Trump and Musk could bring if federal offices shuttered.

"A shutdown will allow DOGE to shift into overdrive," Schumer said, referring to the Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency. "Donald Trump and Elon Musk would be free to destroy vital government services at a much faster rate."

Trump administration asks Supreme Court to partly allow birthright citizenship restrictions

The Trump administration is asking the Supreme Court to allow restrictions on birthright citizenship to partly take effect while legal fights play out.

In emergency applications filed at the high court on Thursday, the administration asked the justices to narrow court orders entered by district judges in Maryland, Massachusetts and Washington that blocked the order President Donald Trump signed shortly after beginning his second term.

The order currently is blocked nationwide. Three federal appeals courts have rejected the administration's pleas, including one in Massachusetts on Tuesday.

The order would deny citizenship to those born after Feb. 19 whose parents are in the country illegally. It also forbids U.S. agencies from issuing any document or accepting any state document recognizing citizenship for such children.

Roughly two dozen states, as well as several individuals and groups, have sued over the executive order, which they say violates the Constitution’s 14th Amendment promise of citizenship to anyone born inside the United States.

The Justice Department argues that individual judges lack the power to give nationwide effect to their rulings.

The administration instead wants the justices to allow the Trump’s plan to go into effect for everyone except the handful of people and group that sued, arguing that the states lack the legal right, or standing, to challenge the executive order.

As a fallback, the administration asked “at a minimum” to be allowed to make public announcements about how they plan to carry out the policy if it eventually is allowed to take effect.

Acting Solicitor General Sarah Harris contends in her filing that Trump's order is constitutional because the 14th amendment's citizenship clause, properly read, “does not extend citizenship universally to everyone born in the United States.”

But the emergency appeal is not directly focused on the validity of the order. Instead, it raises an issue that has previously drawn criticism from some members of the court, the broad reach of orders issued by individual federal judges.

In all, five conservative justices, a majority of the court, have raised concerns in the past about nationwide, or universal, injunctions.

But the court has never ruled on the matter.

The administration made a similar argument in Trump's first term, including in the Supreme Court fight over his ban on travel to the U.S. from several Muslim majority countries.

The court eventually upheld Trump's policy, but did not take up the issue of nationwide injunctions.

The problem has only gotten worse, Harris told the court on Thursday. Courts issued 15 orders blocking administration actions nationwide in February alone, compared to 14 such orders in the first three years of President Joe Biden's term, she wrote.

The heightened pace of activity also reflects how quickly Trump has moved, less than two months in office, to fire thousands of federal workers, upend tens of billions of dollars in foreign and domestic aid, roll back the rights of transgender people and restrict birthright citizenship.

Central Florida group hits Tallahassee to get more funding for the arts

Central Florida arts and culture organizations felt the pinch last year after Gov. Ron DeSantis cut out roughly $32 million for the arts.

With the legislative session underway, arts groups are now lobbying their legislators to try to secure funding for next year’s budget.

Theresa Smith-Levin lives in Winter Park, and she is hoping that the funding shortfall will be addressed this year.

“I think there are a lot of challenges in our arts community as a result of the arts funding. So, we’re very hopeful that the veto will be a one year problem,” said Smith-Levin, who is the executive director of Central Florida Vocal Arts.

The group offers free voice lessons to Orange and Osceola County Public School students.

Their overall goal is to re-imagine the future of vocal arts.

“We would have been eligible for about $58,000 of funding last year,” Smith-Levin said.

That money could have funded a position on their staff. Smith-Levin had to turn to the community to find a solution.

“We’re very lucky to be a victory cup initiative recipient as well as the Winter Park health foundation’s well together grant recipient. Those new opportunities helped us to reach new funders, new audiences. However, if we hadn’t had those opportunities come to us in 2024, we would be in a much different fiscal position,” she said.

As a result, no programs were cut. Growth, however, was stifled.

That’s why Smith-Levin is hitting the road to Tallahassee. She’s hoping to strike a chord with legislators to see arts funding restored.

“I think if we’re looking at a zero funding for many institutions two years in a row, we will lose arts organizations that do incredible work in our community,” she said.