Because Congress won’t do its job, another government shutdown looms

Here we go again. After passing a series of recent stop-gap spending bills to keep the federal government operating, a potential government shutdown looms once again. Because our lawmakers have been unable or unwilling to develop long-term strategies for federal funding, the next deadline is coming up again on Friday. And once again, it appears republicans and democrats are far apart in efforts to reach a deal. And this time, reaching even a temporary funding measure will be difficult. Democrats are threatening to insist on dealing with the so-called Dreamers through the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. Getting a deal on DACA will likely be difficult, especially given President Trump’s recent comments about people entering the U.S. from certain “s-hole” countries. On top of that, there are wide disagreements about a disaster aid package for Texas, Florida and other places devastated by hurricanes. Lawmakers in Washington are also at odds over a children’s health insurance program called CHIP. They generally agree on the need for a long-term authorization of the program, but disagree over how to pay for it. So here we are, facing yet another possible government shutdown, all because Congress refuses to adopt a long-term budget, they only real requirement of their jobs. Most likely, if we’re lucky, we’ll see Congress just kick the can down the road one more time.