Congress cutting it close on spending deadline
Washington (CNN) – Congressional negotiators are closing in on one of the most important policy decisions of the year – how to divvy up roughly $1 trillion in government funds, but they may be running out of time to get a bill through Congress by the January 15 funding deadline, according to Republican and Democratic sources.
Instead, those sources confirm that Congress may need to pass a temporary one or two-day funding bill to keep the government running next week.
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Leadership sources in both parties tell CNN that appropriators want to finalize a broad, or omnibus, government spending bill in the next two days. House Republican leaders hope to start gauging support for a bill Friday. The rules of the House require a three-day waiting period before a bill comes to a vote, but House leaders have sometimes waived that requirement.
No matter how quickly the House acts, the sweeping spending bill could still face a procedural grind in the Senate and take days for debate. Leadership aides are divided over whether passage of an omnibus spending bill by January 15 is still possible, but all seem to agree that the timeline is getting very tight.
The bill would be a sort of part-two to the bipartisan budget deal passed last month. That so-called Murray-Ryan agreement set overall spending levels for the government. Now appropriators, led by Democrat Barbara Mikulski in the Senate and Republican Harold Rogers in the House, have to specify who gets what, agency by agency.
That difficult and granular debate over priorities and programs usually takes months. But appropriators have had just three weeks since the budget numbers became final. As a result, multiple sources close to the negotiations say that staff has been working long hours, including Christmas and New Year's days, to try and meet the January 15 deadline.
So far, negotiators have finished half of the sub-sections that make up the omnibus bill, Mikulski told reporters Tuesday. And a Democratic aide close to negotiations said that the other half are nearly finished.
But those final details have required days of negotiations. And, the Senate aide admits, they are cutting it very close toward getting something by the president by January 15.
CNN's Deirdre Walsh contributed to this story.
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Im sure what ever happens it will be blamed on everyone and everything but Oblunder.
They have had plenty of time to make plans and have something going. This is truly sad. Welcome to the new America. 🙁
You know, it's kind of strange, I used to be known as a taxpayer, now I am an extreme right wing racist. And life continues in the Obamanatoon.
"Congressional negotiators are closing in on one of the most important policy decisions of the year – how to divvy up roughly $1 trillion in government funds..."
What they should be deciding is what items not to fund and save a whole lot of billions of bucks.
Where there's smoke, there's fire.
poverty is at a 50 year high, and growing. . . . more Part-time than Full-time jobs created. . . . a shrinking Middle Class. . . . 1 of every 6 Americans on Food Stamps, and growing. . . . 127 TRILLION Dollars UNFUNDED LIABILITIES, and growing. . . . 17 TRILLION Dollars National DEBT, and growing. . . . 7 TRILLION Dollars TRADE DEFICIT, and growing. . . . America is mediocre in academic testing compared to over 167 countries. . . . COSTS of Obamacare growing. . . . a 6th year in the White House with a President WITHOUT LEADERSHIP Skills. . . a DYSFUNCTIONAL Congress, both sides. .
The only thing this congress could ever get right would be cutting their own throats. Come next November, most if not all of them need to be sent home for the last time, never to grace the interior of the Capital ever again.
Hello everyone Republican, Democrat ,Teaparty (R), Democratic leftist socialist.
Here we go again same old fight, same old gridlock, same old in effect no budget, House no interest in Immigration reform, minimum wage, re-instatement of Unemployment benefits.
All of which if done might just a tad help the economy.
OOoooops more important other things to do talk, delay, defund, undermine PPACA.
Go ahead both sides don't agree force another debt ceiling just prove you are both incapable of compromise negotiation and our way or the high way.
A once certain Republican says ( not so since 2008) continue this and other policies and the House will go democrat and there will not be significant republican gains in the Senate 1 or 2 at best in 2014. PPACA will be a 90 % success by 2014.
Regards,
Hodgson.
Remove all these GOP garbage from congress, senate. Have guts. God bless!!!