US Congress ends, Bush signs spending bill

WASHINGTON, Dec 9 (Reuters) The Republican-led 109th Congress ended today, sending US President George W Bush legislation to normalize trade with former enemy Vietnam, renew popular tax cuts, open the Gulf of Mexico to new oil and gas drilling and keep the government running.

The package was among a stack of bills the Senate and House of Representatives passed as Democrats, victorious in last month's elections, prepared to take control of the new 110th Congress, set to convene on January 4.

Just beating yesterday midnight deadline, Congress also approved a stop-gap funding bill to keep the government running into next year. Bush quickly signed that bill today.

The bill was needed because Republicans left behind nine of 11 spending bills that finance various government programs for the new Democratic-led Congress to finish.

Democrats, who had criticized a ''do-nothing Congress'' under Republicans, plan a quick start next month for the new Congress by voting for the first federal minimum wage increase in a decade.

They also vow to cut costs for health care and education and step up calls for a new Iraq war strategy.

''We must end the policies that have divided this nation and come together on a new way forward,'' Rep. Silvestre Reyes of Texas said in his party's weekly Saturday radio address.

In his weekly radio address today, Bush also called for an end to partisan bickering over Iraq.

''Now it is the responsibility of all of us in Washington -- Republicans and Democrats alike -- to come together and find greater consensus on the best way forward,'' Bush said.

Among the bills passed in a marathon session that stretched from early yesterday to around 4:40 a.m. (1510 hrs IST) today was a bill to help clear the way for nuclear-armed India to buy US nuclear reactors and fuel for the first time in 30 years.

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, who is retiring from Congress, hailed his fellow Republicans for their work in the final hours of their control.

''Just when everyone bet against us, Republicans put together a broad package of energy, tax, trade and health care measures,'' Frist said.

The bill would set aside Cold War restrictions on trade with Vietnam and clear the way for US farmers, bankers and other businesses to share in the market-opening benefits of Hanoi's entry into the World Trade Organization next month.

Bush, who sought the Vietnam trade bill, said in a statement that former communist foe was ''demonstrating its strong commitment to continuing economic reforms, which will support political reform and respect for human rights.'' Vietnam welcomed the move.

''The event is of major significance for the ties between Vietnam and the US, marking full normalization of the bilateral relationship, especially in the economic and trade fields,'' Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Le Dung said in a statement.

The legislation also gave new life to some expired tax breaks for research and development, education, state and local sales taxes and other popular causes and canceled a pay cut next year for doctors who treat the elderly under Medicare.

While Congress was pushing to clear legislation, a House ethics panel issued a report concluding that top Republicans were negligent in failing to protect young interns from unwanted advances by former Rep. Mark Foley, the Florida Republican who resigned in an Internet sex scandal shortly before the November 7 elections.

But the bipartisan panel said it found no violation of House ethics rules and meted out no punishment other than admonishing those it said should have done more.

REUTERS PDM RN2337