Congress No Closer to Avoiding January Shutdown

Punchbowl News: “We are 51 days until the federal government enters into a partial shutdown, with a full shutdown just two weeks later. Not only have the House and Senate not begun negotiations on the particulars of the 12 annual spending bills, congressional leaders haven’t even decided on a topline number yet. Nothing can happen until that’s done.”

“Aides to the Big Four have begun discussions over a topline number. The challenge here is that the White House, Senate Republicans, House Democrats and Senate Democrats are going to insist on the 2024 topline spending number from the Fiscal Responsibility Act — $1.586 trillion. Perhaps even a little higher.”

“But House Republicans have been conditioned by their own leadership to believe they’ll be able to convince the rest of Washington to cut spending significantly. However, they lack the political leverage to make this happen, especially after the last few months of dysfunction.”

Steven Pearlstein: The three fantasies that keep Congress dysfunctional.