No government shutdown—Deal in works

David Hawkings at Roll Call says a deal is in the works between Harry Reid and Mitch McConnell to end the brinkmanship about a government shutdown and fund the government through December 15^th.  It goes like this.  The House will pass a continuing resolution extending spending at sequester levels until Dec 15 while forbidding that any money be spent on Obamacare.  The “Defund Obamacare” Republicans will get to claim a victory.  The Senate will take up the bill in one of two optional “sleight-of-hand” ways depending upon how Reid decides to handle it.  McConnell will go along with Reid.  Long and short of it is that Republicans in the Senate will get to huff and puff and perhaps filibuster about defunding Obamacare and then Democrats will strip out the Obamacare defunding and pass the extension thus taking the heat for keeping the government funded at sequester levels rather than fighting to restore funding to Democratic-favored programs like Headstart.  The Senate version (without Obamacare defunding)  will go back to the House where it will be approved and sent to Obama on Monday September 30th after a long weekend of will they/won't they.  Everybody gets to claim some kind of victory and to cover their ass.   It is no way to run a country but it is OUR way.

Read more about the deal and the options Reid is considering here:

http://blogs.rollcall.com/hawkings/shutdown-endgame-buys-all-sides-a-second-play/