Once again, Congress is facing a potential shutdown, as lawmakers are five days away from a key funding deadline with a plan not yet released.
As of Sunday, lawmakers had yet to release a bipartisan spending deal, though they were hopeful it would come by the end of the weekend.
But with disputes over policy remaining, House Speaker Mike Johnson finds himself on the hot seat fighting for conservative wins.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) is on the other side of the negotiating table from Johnson, and he says that the delay in the bill being released comes from his Republican colleagues in the House.
“While we had hoped to have legislation ready this weekend that would give ample time for members to review the text, it is clear now that House Republicans need more time to sort themselves out,” Schumer wrote in a letter on Sunday.
Johnson responded to the remarks from Schumer, saying on social media that there has been nonstop work in the House to keep the government open.
“Despite the counterproductive rhetoric in Leader Schumer’s letter, the House has worked nonstop, and is continuing to work in good faith, to reach agreement with the Senate on compromise government funding bills in advance of the deadlines,” Johnson wrote.
The deadlines lawmakers are facing include one on March 1 and another on March 8, just weeks after a short-term funding bill was passed in January.
On Tuesday, with two days left before funding runs out, President Joe Biden will meet with the top four congressional leaders to discuss a funding measure.
Among the topics to be included in talks include funding for Ukraine and Israel, a solution at the border, and spending cuts.
Senators will reconvene in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, leaving little room for error if they hope to keep the government open.