Senate Republicans narrowly block bid to bar Trump’s $1.8bn fund to pay allies

Three GOP senators joined Democrats as dispute over proposed payouts exposed party divisions

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Senate Republicans on Thursday narrowly scuttled an attempt by Democrats to stop Donald Trump from creating a $1.8bn fund to pay his allies, even as signs emerged that dissent over the proposal was spreading inside the US president’s own party.

Democratic Senate minority leader, Chuck Schumer, had proposed inserting language barring the payouts into Republican-backed legislation to fund Trump’s mass deportation campaign through the duration of his term.