As congressional leaders scramble to finalize a $900 billion covid relief deal, it’s growing increasingly unlikely that Congress will be able to get the long-awaited plan through both chambers by Friday night when a government shutdown looms.
With less than two days left on the clock, lawmakers are now discussing the possibility of extending the shutdown deadline, again, to allow more time for negotiations to lock down a deal and push it through the House and Senate.
The two issues are tied together since leaders want to tie the relief deal to a $1.4 trillion funding bill to keep the government open through next September.
The bottom line: Unless things change quickly, final consideration of the massive measure could slip to the weekend or early next week.
