Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By richards on July 26, 2013

By Andrew Taylor, The Associated Press

WASHINGTON - Despite pressure from some liberal Democrats for a September showdown in hopes of ending huge automatic, government-shrinking spending cuts, Washington appears on track to avert what would be the first government shutdown in nearly two decades.

That's not to say it will be easy. Senior lawmakers on Capitol Hill are finding trickier-than-usual obstacles in their path as they try to come up with must-do legislation to keep federal agencies running after Sept. 30.

At issue is what is normally routine: a plug-the-gap measure known as a continuing resolution to fund the government for a few weeks or months until a deal can be worked out on appropriations bills giving agencies their operating budgets for the full 2014 fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1.

On the one hand are some Democratic liberals who don't want to vote to continue to fund the government at new, lower levels mandated by automatic, across-the-board spending cuts known as sequestration. This program has cut $55 billion about 5 per cent from the day-to-day operating budgets of federal agencies since March.

"There are lots of progressives who care about domestic discretionary spending who think that the Republicans are winning because with the sequester we have a gradual downsizing of the government going on that nobody's doing anything about and If we just let it keep happening without having a confrontation about it we're losing. And Sept. 30 becomes a place to have a confrontation about it," said Democratic strategist Steve Elmendorf, a former longtime House staff aide.

On the other hand are conservatives making a last stand against President Barack Obama's new health care law and Senate Democrats' resistance to a $20 billion spending cut wanted by many, if not most, Republicans. These are two of the major problems confronting House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, and other GOP leaders.

The combustible mix raises the possibility of the first government shutdown since the 1995-96 battle between President Bill Clinton and GOP insurgents led by Speaker Newt Gingrich. Republicans got the worst of that battle and have avoided shutdowns ever since.

"I don't see any big challenges," Boehner, R-Ohio, said recently. "The law is the law."

As for Obama, he'd be hard-pressed to veto a bill that keeps to government funded at the same rate it's funded now.

Read more:
Health care funding, more spending cuts are obstacles to averting government shutdown in fall

Category: Jewish American Heritage Month
Tags: