As military preps for new shutdown threat, lawmakers sound optimistic tone

WASHINGTON — Lawmakers on both sides of a bitter partisan debate on Capitol Hill haven’t ruled out a temporary funding bill to head off a crucial deadline Thursday.

The talks could signal that Congress is headed for a new stopgap budget plan rather than a repeat of last month’s government shutdown.

Some say a vote will need to be in the works by Tuesday with Republicans gone much of last week for a party retreat and their Democratic counterparts headed to theirs Wednesday.

“The fact that the Hill has been basically out of session since Tuesday does not bode well for avoiding a shutdown,” warned Lauren Fish, a defense strategies research associate for the Center for a New American Security, a Washington think tank. However, “Democrats are heading out of town Wednesday. ... After ceding defeat on the last shutdown, it won’t be good optically if they shut the government down and then get out of Dodge.”

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