Updated 4:23 p.m. | The House will vote Tuesday evening on three bills to reopen various government programs that were shuttered when appropriations lapsed less than 24 hours ago. One will allow veterans to continue receiving benefits, one will fund daily operation of national parks and museums and one will give the District of Columbia the authority to spend its own funds in the absence of congressional authorization. The suite of bills is part of a larger plan GOP leaders unveiled on Tuesday afternoon wherein Congress can ensure certain key government functions remain operational — without conceding on a full continuing resolution that doesn't defund or delay certain provisions of the 2010 health care law. Though Republican aides said the idea did not originate in the other chamber, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, floated the idea on Monday. The substance and sequence of all these bills has not yet been determined, but they are not expected to include extraneous policy riders regarding Obamacare. All of the mini-CRs would go to Dec. 15 and would fund agencies at the same sequester level as proposed under the comprehensive CR that the chambers have been battling over for the past week and a half. Democratic votes will be needed for passage, however, considering a two-thirds majority is needed for bills on the suspension calendar. And so far, that support isn't guaranteed. (more…)
