WASHINGTON (AP) — Just hours before a midnight deadline, a bitterly divided Congress approved a stopgap spending bill Wednesday to keep the federal government open — but with no assurance there won't be yet another shutdown showdown in December.
Democrats helped beleaguered House Republican leaders pass the measure by 277-151 — a lopsided vote shrouding deep disagreements within the GOP — after the Senate approved it by a 78-20 tally earlier in the day. President Barack Obama signed the bill Wednesday evening, but not without White House carping.
BOSTON — Plans for a casino in Everett face a new roadblock after both Somerville and Boston sued to block the Wynn Resorts project on the shores of the Mystic River, claiming that the developer failed to adequately address environmental impacts, particularly traffic congestion it is likely to cause in Charlestown and Somerville.
Both cities sued a unit of Las Vegas-based Wynn over the process to obtain the environmental permits needed to build the $1.7 billion gambling resort. Somerville also named the state Gaming Commission as a defendant, saying the board issued a license for the casino without following proper procedures with respect to the environmental consequences.
