Friday, April 8, 2011 | 2:01 p.m.
House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va., told rank-and-file members during a closed-door meeting that if a funding deal is struck later on Friday, steps will be taken to keep the government from shutting down at midnight. He assured the lawmakers that there would be some type of "bridge" put forth to allow the added time necessary to put the accord's details into legislative form.
Lawmakers said they understood that to mean a short-term continuing resolution would be taken up -- perhaps for a day, the weekend, or as long as a week -- to allow time for bill drafters to finalize their work.
"There'll be some sort of bridge," said Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla. "If there's an agreement, he said we'll find a way to not shut down because of process."
But Appropriations Chairman Harold Rogers, R-Ky., emphasized that would occur "only if there is agreement" with the Senate on a final spending plan.
As the clock ticked toward a shutdown deadline, there were other signs that a deal would be struck before the midnight deadline.
House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, told his members that while a final deal continued to elude negotiators, he remained hopeful. "Stay tuned. Keep the faith," Boehner said, according to a lawmaker in the room who asked not to be identified because conference meetings are private. The lawmaker said Boehner reiterated that the hold-up is spending cuts, and not policy riders, contrary to Democratic claims that the dollar figures were agreed to, with the dispute over abortion funding still left to work out.
POLITICS COLUMN April 8, 2011
So many pundits and folks on both sides keep repeating that a government shutdown would be a bad thing politically for Republicans and a good thing for President Obama. The reasoning is based on the last government shutdown in 1995-96 and Clinton’s rise in the aftermath. But that historical lesson may not apply.
Read more »3:19 p.m.
By Theresa Poulson
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid was grilled by reporters at a 2 p.m. briefing. They pressed him to be more specific about what is holding up negotiations over the short-term continuing resolution.
Read more »ANALYSIS 7:18 p.m.
Two weeks ago, President Obama was pulled inside a congressional conflict he only intended to referee. It seemed there was a moment of crisis, and Senate Democrats complained vocally that the White House wasn’t doing enough to build a bridge between themselves and House Republicans. By bridge-building, they really meant “wedge-expanding.” Democrats wanted President Obama to use the presidential pulpit to create divisions within the Republican Party.
Read more » ANALYSIS 10:00 p.m.
WHITE HOUSE 11:11 p.m.
By Matthew Cooper
Less than an hour before the federal government was scheduled to shut down, President Obama went to the briefing room of the White House to hail the deal that had been struck between the White House and congressional leaders.
“Tomorrow I’m pleased to announce that the Washington Monument and the entire federal government will be open for business,” Obama said with the monument looming behind him.
He praised House Speaker John Boehner and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. He noted:
“Americans of different beliefs came together again…Like any worthwhile compromise both sides had to make tough decisions and give ground on issues that were important to them. I certainly did that.”
Obama took pride in the deal calling it the largest annual spending cut in American history.
Read more »BUDGET 12:22 a.m.
House Republicans didn’t get everything they wanted, but in the end they will be able to say their efforts will result in an unprecedented level of spending cuts. In politics, this is called a win.
Read more »
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