On Thursday President Joe Biden signed the $1.7 trillion omnibus spending package while on vacation in St. Croix. The bill was sent to the Virgin Islands to complete the last step necessary for its approval after the paperwork was not completed before the president left Washington. According to a White House official:
The White House received the bill from Congress late Wednesday afternoon. The bill was delivered to the President for signature by White House staff on a scheduled commercial flight.
The president posted on Twitter that 2022 was "a year of historic progress" and stated that the spending package passed by Congress "will invest in medical research, security, veterans' health care, disaster recovery, Violence Against Women Act funding, and get crucial assistance to Ukraine."
The package includes more than $850 billion for defense, more than $770 billion in domestic discretionary spending and about $45 billion in aid to Ukraine and NATO.
Signing bills into law while traveling
This is at least the second time in 2022 that a major bill has had to be sent to Biden for his signature. During a trip to Asia last May, a staff member who was already scheduled to travel to the region brought a bill authorizing about $40 billion for aid to Ukraine. Biden signed the bill while overseas.
