On Friday, Breitbart reported that the House of Representatives had passed the Continuing Resolution (CR) and passed it on to the Senate. The CR would keep the government funded until November 21. There are two bills proposed in the Senate to keep the government open–one by the Democrats and one by the Republicans. Both bills are expected to fail because 60 votes are needed to pass either one. Personally, I think the possibility of a shutdown depends on whether or not the Democrats think the media will join them in blaming the Republicans. If the Democrats believe that they will be blamed for the shutdown, there won’t be a shutdown.

The article reports:

Now the bill moves on to the Senate where it faces strong headwinds.

The Senate is expected to vote on two bills: first, a Democrat alternative to the CR that is a non-starter for Republican majorities in the House and the Senate as well as the Republican White House, followed by the House-passed CR. This two-step approach is designed to give appropriators more time to reach a bipartisan deal.

Both bills are likely to fail, with the Senate expected to recess afterward until September 29 — hours before the deadline of October 1.

The short-term CR expires November 21, using a tactic often employed by Congressional leaders to schedule must-pass votes before Thanksgiving or Christmas to encourage recalcitrant members to vote yes and return home for the holidays.

I have hope that someday Congress will get back to the budget process the law requires them to follow.