Republican Leaders Are Running Out Of Options As A Shutdown Looks Imminent
by Tyler Durden
ZeroHedge.com
Thu, 01/18/2018
Update: The House now expects to vote on the stopgap bill around 7 pm Thursday.
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With barely 36 hours left until funding for the federal government expires at midnight Friday, Republican leaders are scrambling to whip up support for a continuing resolution – what would be the fourth since September – that would keep the lights on until mid-February. However, with Democrats holding out for an immigration deal, and conservative Republicans refusing to play ball, Republican leaders are rapidly running out of options to prevent what both parties fear might be a politically ruinous government shutdown during a crucial election year.
NBC News is reporting that House Republicans are confident they have the votes to pass the funding stop-gap before the deadline, according to anonymous “leadership aides.” But the measure’s prospects in the Senate remain much dimmer.
And while Speaker Paul Ryan has said he plans to bring the plan up for a vote Thursday regardless of the whip count, it looks like Republicans in the House might still be a few votes short.
Meanwhile, Freedom Caucus head Mark Meadows took to MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” Thursday morning to bash the continuing resolution, arguing that Americans are “fed up” with one short-term government spending bill after another – a sentiment that was echoed by Senator Lindsey Graham.
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