WASHINGTON – House Democrats on Friday prepared a temporary spending bill that is needed to avert a government shutdown at the end of the month — and that would allow lawmakers to leave Washington to campaign.
It's a lowest-common-denominator, bare-minimum measure that befits a deeply polarized Congress. Even so, it took intense efforts at the highest levels of Washington to finish the package.
It was set to be released Friday afternoon after a last-minute negotiating flurry.Republicans denied Democratic requests involving the census and election administration grants.