Whither the federal budget?
The battle over the federal government’s fiscal year 2022-2023 budget – yes, the budget that’s already six months old – is ongoing.
On Tuesday, Dec. 13, lawmakers announced an agreement to pass another continuing resolution before the current one expires on Friday. The new continuing resolution will maintain fiscal year 2022 funding levels through December 23, in the hopes that a long-term deal can be forged by then.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has expressed hopes that Republicans and Democrats can agree on an omnibus package. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Ca.) is strongly opposed to any long-term agreement, preferring to wait a few weeks, at which point he’ll be the speaker and in a much stronger bargaining position.
My New Year’s resolution: No more yak shaving