AppId is over the quota
Next week, Congress will consider, and likely pass, a bill to keep the government funded until Nov. 18. Back in March, when a government shutdown seemed all but inevitable, a two-month continuing resolution likely would have taken months of partisan wrangling, negotiations, and some type of cost-cutting to appease Tea Party lawmakers. But the extension proposed by Republicans isn't creating much controversy. It uses the funding level set by the debt ceiling bill, and doesn't try to force changes in government policies on healthcare or abortion — something the GOP tried to do earlier this year. Democrats aren't happy about some of the tradeoffs in the bill to pay for disaster relief, but ultimately it gained the support of both the Democratic and Republican leaders of the House Appropriations Committee.
And thus, the new post-standoff era of this Congress begins. Politicians from both sides are exhausted after a spring and summer of brinkmanship with the nation's economy and government in the balance. Anything is possible, and there are plenty of reasons to suspect that the two parties may not be able to come together to complete a funding bill by the end of the year. (Currently, funding is set to expire on Sept. 30, the end of the fiscal year.) But there doesn't seem to be much of an appetite for a shutdown. The House GOP leaders have pushed for a full appropriations bill at the funding levels set by the debt ceiling agreement, which the White House has already agreed to. So far, there have been no blustery ultimatums on so-called policy riders, restrictions in funding which try to influence the government on issues such as healthcare, abortion, financial regulation, or the environment. Lawmakers would rather just finish out the year.
[See political cartoons about the GOP.]
But like an alcoholic trying to ween himself off the bottle, Congress sometimes relapses into brinkmanship. This week, Oklahoma Republican Sen. Tom Coburn enraged Democrats, and perhaps a few of his fellow Republicans, by trying to block a four-month funding bill for the Federal Aviation Administration. Coburn objected to a provision which required states to set aside money for projects such as bike trails. The hold could have lead to furloughs for thousands of FAA employees, and senators girded themselves for a weekend session. Coburn, a mercurial lawmaker who's known for taking stubborn stances over government spending, finally backed down after striking a deal with the Democratic leadership. The Senate also passed a bill continuing federal highway programs into next year.
This year, the budget drama — if there is any — will likely take a back seat to the super-committee and to Obama's jobs plan. While Congress tries to figure out how to revive the economy and cut the deficit, it may have very quietly found a way to get through the small stuff.
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