Whenever one of these omnibus packages floats out of Congress, one of its main selling points always is the counter-intuitive claim that “this won’t make anyone happy.” If so, then the latest entry in bipartisan emergency budgeting should have no trouble passing — and no trouble collecting slings and arrows from both sides as it passes through the gauntlet:

Congressional negotiators unveiled a $1.1 trillion funding bill late Monday that would ease sharp spending cuts known as the sequester while providing fresh cash for new priorities, including President Obama’s push to expand early-childhood education.

The 1,582-page bill would fully restore cuts to Head Start, partially restore cuts to medical research and job training programs, and finance new programs to combat sexual assault in the military. It would also give all federal workers a 1 percent raise.

Want an insight into Beltway priorities? Here’s the biggest objection that the Washington Post highlights:

But in a blow to the District, it provides only partial funding to continue constructing buildings for the Department of Homeland Security’s campus in Anacostia.

Ahem. Yes, the rest of the country will have to deal with the bitter blow of not seeing the Department of Homeland Security get some sweet new office space in DC. We’ll try to survive that disappointment.

How about veterans?  I know that’s not as important as building palaces for bureaucrats, but the last we heard from Omnibus Inc, military retirees were getting pensions cut to pay for other budget priorities.  Good news here — only some veterans will get their pensions trimmed:

Given barely a month to complete work on the package, Mikulski and Rogers were able to overcome early partisan disputes over funding for the Affordable Care Act, Obama’s signature legislative achievement, and payments due to the International Monetary Fund, a frequent target of conservatives. To sweeten the package, they agreed to include a provision that would exempt disabled veterans from a modest pension reduction for military retirees enacted last month to help cover the cost of the sequester repeal.

Current federal workers will get a 1% pay increase, though. DHS gets a $339 million haircut, while the Department of Education will get over $70 billion, including a big chunk of change for Head Start:

Obama secured significant new funding he has wanted for pre-kindergarten education initiatives, albeit more through existing programs like Head Start than the new format he envisioned.

Indeed, the new $8.6 billion funding level for Head Start reflects one of the biggest investments in the bill — an estimated $1 billion, or 13 percent, increase over current funding and $612 million over its initial 2013 enacted appropriation.

It was exactly a year ago this week that an HHS study showed that Head Start didn’t actually improve education (and arguably produced worse results), so of course we’re spending more money on it.

Republicans point to the fact that overall agency spending remains at Bush administration budget levels, while Democrats will hail the funding for Head Start and other Obama administration priorities. Hugh Hewitt isn’t buying the spin:

@MHjort1776 : Focus right now should be on a terrible, terrible budget deal that slashes spending for only 1 group: career military

— Hugh Hewitt (@hughhewitt) January 14, 2014

I don't see how a GOP Congressman or Senator who votes for this "deal" can look any veteran in the face and say "I support you."

— Hugh Hewitt (@hughhewitt) January 14, 2014

The appropriations "deal" is a shameful betrayal of the career military. Career military are the only group that takes serious cuts. 1/3

— Hugh Hewitt (@hughhewitt) January 14, 2014

Had everyone sacrificed -MOCs, their staffs, special interests- cuts to military COLAs would fly, but not as a category of 1. 3/3 #Disgrace

— Hugh Hewitt (@hughhewitt) January 14, 2014

Nevertheless, the budget will likely pass, although in stages. First, Congress has to get past the Wednesday drop-dead date of the previous continuing resolution; Politico expects a short-term CR to the weekend, or perhaps just a bit beyond. The House will then take up the bill and is expected to pass it quickly, leaving the Senate a few days to deal with its procedural issues. By Monday, this may be all done, and the FY2015 budget will become the new battlefield. Both sides in Congress need to get away from emergency budgeting in order to fight for the midterm narrative, but expect it to return again in September with another CR on this baseline to get us through the midterm election season.

This is the kind of lousy budgeting that gets done through emergency procedures. It’s a great argument for regular order, so that appropriations bills pass with legitimate debates, amendments, and plenty of time for scrutiny. For the last several years, we have been doing the Pelosi Shuffle — not knowing what’s in these bills until we pass them. We need to insist on normal order and a rational budget process.