
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump has signed a temporary government-wide funding bill into law, averting a federal shutdown at midnight and buying Congress time for on-again, off-again talks on COVID-19 aid. The short-term measure passed the Senate just hours earlier by a unanimous voice vote without much drama and sent senators home for the weekend without a clear picture of what awaits next week. The bill sets a new deadline of midnight next Friday. The House passed the bill Wednesday. COVID-19 relief talks remain stalled but there is universal agreement that Congress won’t adjourn for the year without passing a long-delayed round of pandemic relief.