President Barack Obama praised the Senate's passage of a stopgap budget and debt deal Wednesday, vowing to sign the bill as soon as possible after the House passes it and "immediately" begin reopening the government. Obama praised the leaders for reaching the deal in his statement at the White House and said he hopes that next time it won't take until the "eleventh hour" to get a deal. "We'll begin reopening our government immediately, and we can begin to lift this cloud of uncertainty and unease from our businesses and from the American people," he said. (more…)
