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POLITICS
How To Stop a Government Shutdown
Both houses of Congress are working on plans to prevent future shutdowns
We are headed for another government shutdown thanks to a tantrum by the House Freedom Caucus. They always throw tantrums when they don’t get their way. Honestly, the emotional maturity of these Republicans is Trump-level.
Why does anyone allow them to get away with it? Oh, that’s right. The Republican majority in the House is razor thin. Speaker McCarthy needs all the votes he can get. When the Freedom Caucus deigns to award him their votes, that is.
But all is not lost. Over in the Senate, which has fewer crazies and a Republican minority, not to mention a Grim Reaper in a leadership position, patience is wearing thin with the toddlers over in the House. There is growing interest in the Senate, on both sides of the aisle, in a bill called, appropriately, the “Prevent Government Shutdowns Act of 2023.” It is sponsored by Sens. James Lankford (R-Okla.) and Maggie Hassan (D-N.H) and is designed to do exactly what it says, prevent any more government shutdowns.
It does this in two ways. If lawmakers are unable to agree on a budget, the government will automatically be kept open with funding in two-week increments. Now here’s the catch and the reason why…
