Breaking: House passes funding bill — with billions in border wall funding Dems refuse to pass

The U.S. government edged closer to a shutdown after Republicans in the House of Representatives passed a funding bill that included billions for the border wall.

Democrats made it clear that they would not accept a bill that funded the border wall that was promised by President Donald Trump during his 2016 presidential campaign.

Republicans passed it anyway in a 217-185 vote — only eight Republicans voted against the bill. If the Senate passes the bill, which is unlikely, the border wall would receive $5 billion in funding.

The deadline for a bill to pass before government shuts down is Friday at midnight.

Outgoing House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) said that he spoke with the president, who said that he would not sign a bill without border wall funding.

"The president informed us that he will not sign the bill that came over from the Senate last evening because of his legitimate concerns for border security, so what we're gonna do is go back to the House and work with our members," Ryan said.

"We want to keep the government open but we also want to see an agreement that protects the border," he added.

"Everyone knows it can't pass the Senate"

Even before the bill passed, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said that the House's version would not pass the Senate.

"The bill that's on the floor of the House, everyone knows, will not pass the Senate," said Schumer.

"Everyone knows it can't pass the Senate," he added. "It's a cynical attempt to just hurt innocent people and do just what President Trump wants even though they probably know it's bad for the country."

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Schumer have been stalwart in their opposition to funding the wall, which led to a contentious meeting between them and the president. Trump and the Democratic leaders openly squabbled about the wall before the president accepted responsibility for any government shutdown.

The bill now goes to the U.S. Senate, where, despite the Republicans having a slim majority, it is likely that the bill will not pass and the government will head to a shutdown.

Here's the latest on the government funding debacle: