US talks to avert government shutdown go down to the wire
Carl Hulse April 9, 2011
Will the lights stay on at the Capitol?Photo: AP
Intense negotiations between Republicans and Democrats continued last night, only hours before the deadline for a federal government shutdown.
After the third round of White House talks in 24 hours with Speaker John Boehner and Senate majority leader Harry Reid, President Barack Obama said he hoped a compromise could be reached overnight.
''I'm not yet prepared to express wild optimism, but I think we are further along today than yesterday,'' Mr Obama said during a late-night appearance in the White House briefing room.
The two sides appeared to be only a few billion dollars apart on the level of spending to be approved for the balance of this year, a relatively small gap in a $US3.5 trillion budget. Negotiations appeared to be hung up mostly over Republican demands to tighten restrictions on financing for abortions and to limit environmental regulations, and by Mr Boehner's desire to squeeze every possible dollar in cuts out of the Democrats.
Mr Boehner and Senator Reid issued their own joint statement after yesterday's meeting, saying they and their advisers would ''continue to work through the night to attempt to resolve our remaining differences''.
Negotiators went to work in the Capitol, although top aides expressed pessimism about a quick conclusion.
After the meeting, Mr Obama cancelled a planned trip to Indiana to participate in the final push towards an agreement.
Throughout yesterday, members of both parties played a game of chicken, seeking to force the other to give in as the deadline of midnight Friday (Washington time) approached. Mr Boehner in particular faced a tricky calculation about how much he could compromise without losing support not just from his large contingent of Tea Party-inspired fiscal conservatives, but also from social conservatives eager for a victory on abortion and other issues.
As Senator Reid returned from the White House and briefly took the Senate floor, he said the issues were ''extremely narrow'', but it was far from certain they could be worked out in time. ''I am not really confident, but I am very, very hopeful.''
Given the uncertainty and the short time remaining, federal agencies prepared to furlough employees and cut off most services. Workers, contractors and consumers scrambled to understand how a shutdown would affect them.
(source:smh.com.au)
Carl Hulse April 9, 2011
Will the lights stay on at the Capitol?Photo: AP
Intense negotiations between Republicans and Democrats continued last night, only hours before the deadline for a federal government shutdown.
After the third round of White House talks in 24 hours with Speaker John Boehner and Senate majority leader Harry Reid, President Barack Obama said he hoped a compromise could be reached overnight.
''I'm not yet prepared to express wild optimism, but I think we are further along today than yesterday,'' Mr Obama said during a late-night appearance in the White House briefing room.
The two sides appeared to be only a few billion dollars apart on the level of spending to be approved for the balance of this year, a relatively small gap in a $US3.5 trillion budget. Negotiations appeared to be hung up mostly over Republican demands to tighten restrictions on financing for abortions and to limit environmental regulations, and by Mr Boehner's desire to squeeze every possible dollar in cuts out of the Democrats.
Mr Boehner and Senator Reid issued their own joint statement after yesterday's meeting, saying they and their advisers would ''continue to work through the night to attempt to resolve our remaining differences''.
Negotiators went to work in the Capitol, although top aides expressed pessimism about a quick conclusion.
After the meeting, Mr Obama cancelled a planned trip to Indiana to participate in the final push towards an agreement.
Throughout yesterday, members of both parties played a game of chicken, seeking to force the other to give in as the deadline of midnight Friday (Washington time) approached. Mr Boehner in particular faced a tricky calculation about how much he could compromise without losing support not just from his large contingent of Tea Party-inspired fiscal conservatives, but also from social conservatives eager for a victory on abortion and other issues.
As Senator Reid returned from the White House and briefly took the Senate floor, he said the issues were ''extremely narrow'', but it was far from certain they could be worked out in time. ''I am not really confident, but I am very, very hopeful.''
Given the uncertainty and the short time remaining, federal agencies prepared to furlough employees and cut off most services. Workers, contractors and consumers scrambled to understand how a shutdown would affect them.
(source:smh.com.au)
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