Democrats in Congress on Wednesday mobilized to defuse one of several crises they face this week, saying they would vote to head off an imminent government shutdown before funding expires at midnight on Thursday.
The Senate could vote on Wednesday or Thursday to fund the government through early December, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said.
“With so many critical issues to address, the last thing the American people need right now is a government shutdown. This proposal will prevent one from happening,” Schumer said.
If it passes, the House of Representatives could vote quickly and send the measure to President Joe Biden to sign into law before the start of the new fiscal year on Friday.
That would avert a partial government shutdown in the middle of a national health crisis. Biden’s Democrats, who narrowly control both chambers of Congress, campaigned on a platform of responsible government after Republican Donald Trump’s turbulent four years in office.
With Democrats deeply divided over his legislative agenda, Biden canceled a Wednesday trip to Chicago so that he could lead negotiations with Congress, the White House said. According to a source, he was due to meet with centrist Democratic Senator Kyrsten Sinema, who has expressed deep concern over the size of Biden’s plans and has the power to block them.
More risks lie ahead as progressive House Democrats are vowing to vote against a $1 trillion infrastructure bill set to come to the floor on Thursday, due to intraparty fights over a much larger social spending bill.
Behind it all looms the threat of the federal government hitting its $28.4 trillion debt ceiling around Oct. 18, an event that could cause a historic default with long-lasting economic fallout.
The House and Senate may vote on a separate bill that temporarily lifts the debt limit, although that is the subject of a bitter partisan fight.
Senate Republicans refuse to vote for it, telling Democrats to act alone, while Schumer has demanded bipartisan cooperation on a measure to address debts racked up during Democratic and Republican administrations.
That left Democrats scrambling to find a way to pass a bill and avert a federal debt default that likely would put financial markets into a tailspin.
“There’s a number of options, but you can take it to the bank Democrats will not let the government default even if Republicans will not vote for it,” Democratic Senator Tim Kaine predicted.
Investment bank Goldman Sachs this month described the standoff as “the riskiest debt-limit deadline in a decade.”
IOL
