Less than three weeks remain before a federal government shutdown is triggered on November 17. That shutdown may be averted if Congress passes a short-term funding measure, while “enacting individual appropriations bills would probably take far too long,” notes the Washington Post, “as the House and Senate don’t agree on how much to spend this fiscal year.” Negotiations between the two chambers were made more complicated by protracted balloting leading to the election of a new Speaker of the House on October 25. Mike Johnson, the new Republican Speaker, has said that averting a shutdown is his first priority in the days ahead, but, according to the site Axios, also indicated that “if indeed we come to November 17 and we’re unable to finish because it’s detailed work and it takes some time, we’ll look at another stopgap measure.” In proposals designed to hold off the government shutdown, two funding bills have been aired in the House: one would reduce Department of Transportation funding by some $7 billion, while the Housing and Urban Development Department would be hit with a $1.2 billion cut. President Biden, however, has said if either bill makes it to his desk, he would veto them. The White House, at the same time, issued a release saying that such cuts would “endanger critical services for the American people.” In September a government shutdown was averted after Congress voted to keep federal agencies open until November 17 as former Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy dropped demands for steep spending cuts. At the time, Democratic New Mexico Congresswoman Melanie Stansbury called the agreement a "huge victory for the American people," while Colorado Republican Congressman Doug Lamborn noted that a shutdown would have hurt "our servicemembers, their families, and countless others in Colorado's Fifth District and across the nation." Meanwhile, the specter of continued government shutdowns appears to be secure: members of the U.S. Senate failed to achieve a required 60 votes needed to pass the Prevent Government Shutdowns Act, which would have instituted a continuing resolution designed to keep federal government agencies in operation until spending agreements are reached. “We have the opportunity to end government shutdowns forever,” Republican Oklahoma Senator said before the measure failed. By Garry Boulard
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