US Senate approves bipartisan budget deal

The US Senate approved here Wednesday a bipartisan two-year budget agreement which is now expected to be sent to US President Barack Obama to be signed into law. The Senate voted 64-36, with nine Republicans joining Democrats to provide the required majority of at least 51 votes to pass. In a statement, Obama said he is "pleased that with tonight's vote in the Senate, for the first time in years, both parties in both houses of Congress have come together to pass a budget." He added that the budget will "continue to reduce our deficits at a time when we've seen four of the fastest years of deficit reduction since the end of World War II." "All told, it's a good first step away from the shortsighted, crisis-driven decision-making that has only served to act as a drag on our economy," he said. "It helps chart our economic course for the next two years, which means that the American people won't be exposed to another painful and unwise government shutdown." "There is much more work to do to ensure our economy works for every working American," he further remarked.