McConnell says Government Will Not Shut Down
By Allison Payne 1 2/5/17
Congress is under pressure as questions arise on whether the government will be able to pass a spending bill before funding runs out at the
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end of the week. Many issues are still being discussed, pushing the spending bill aside for now.
“There’s not going to a be a government shutdown,” says Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, “it’s just not going to happen.”
Congress has yet to solve what to do with the the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which is set to end in March. This Obama-era program protects young undocumented immigrants called ‘dreamers’ who came to the U.S. as children. Democrats say they will insist on protection for dreamers and in return support the GOP’s spending bill.
Congress needs to pass a spending bill by Dec. 8 to keep the government going and avoid a full shutdown. House Speaker Paul Ryan announced a short term spending bill to keep Washington afloat while discussion continues that is expected to last until Dec. 22.