US Senate Republican leader sets key vote on funding for early Monday

Washington (AFP) – The US Senate’s top Republican on Saturday scheduled a key vote for a government funding measure for early Monday.

Lawmakers have been trading bitter recriminations after their failure to agree on a short-term bill to keep the government running failed late Friday, forcing the federal government to shut down.

“I assure you we will have the vote at 1:00 am (0600 GMT) on Monday, unless there is a desire to have it sooner,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said in a statement.