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| *Clears throat and practices my Bing Crosby voice* 'I'm dreaming of a funded government...' |
 | | Lawmakers have hours to avoid a government shutdown. Credit: Getty | |
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T minus 11.5 hours until the government shuts down --> http://bit.ly/2mRNkwF |
| The chances of a government shutdown are increasing by the hour. What's the holdup: Senate Democrats are objecting to the House-passed short-term spending measure because it does not address the Dreamers --illegal immigrants who came to the country as children and now face deportation. Live blog of updates -- bookmark this page to stay updated: http://bit.ly/2DsnkT0 What needs to happen: The Senate needs to pass that House bill to keep the government open but is lacking the votes. If the Senate changes the bill at all, it will need to go back to the House, but the House finished its work for the day and left. Updated whip list on the Senate vote: The Senate needs 60 votes to pass the measure and keep the government open. So far, 39 Democrats say they will vote no -- plus two Republican "no" votes. Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) has also warned that all Dems are opposed to the House bill. http://bit.ly/2De3t6r What the House passed: The House passed a bill to keep the government open until Feb. 16 and fund the Children's Health Insurance Program for six years. The drama: Senate Democrats are threatening to block that bill -- they want the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program addressed. Senators presented President Trump with a tentative bipartisan immigration deal, but Trump rejected that plan. The House vote: 230-197, with six Democrats voting for the measure and 11 Republicans voting against it. http://bit.ly/2FXAkOH Why a shutdown would be so unusual right now: Government shutdowns are rare, especially when one party controls both chambers of Congress and the White House. http://bit.ly/2DixIJx The last government shutdown: The last shutdown was in 2013 and lasted 17 days. Will the House hang around to see this through?: Earlier this morning, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) said the House would adjourn. "We've done our job,' McCarthy told Politico's John Bresnahan. 'It's up to Sen. Schumer to decide if he wants a shutdown.'" I.e.: Gulp. http://bit.ly/2DQSEIT ^^UPDATE -- the House changed its mind and will not leave: Leadership just told members to stay in town and "stay flexible" because additional procedural votes may be possible. http://bit.ly/2EUGNIM JUST NOW -- 'Chuck, my dude!': “News - Trump reached out to Schumer and invited him to WH to try to figure out a deal on spending to avert shutdown, per source briefed” (Via The New York Times's Maggie Haberman) http://bit.ly/2DiTltd Mulvaney: It won't be like 2013: White House budget director Mick Mulvaney just said that if the government shuts down, it won't be as bad as 2013 because former President Obama's administration did things to make it worse. Why: Mulvaney says Obama "weaponized" the shutdown. Why this is newsy: Mulvaney's message appeared to conflict with President Trump's claims in the past few days the shutdown could have a devastating effect, especially for the military. http://bit.ly/2DtC8RO Spotted on Capitol Hill: "Ivanka spotted in the Senate by [Politico's Elana Schor.] Her presence there is not shutdown related. Per WH official, 'part of her meetings on the hill ... with members and [to] expand coalition of support to build on the Administration's Working Families agenda.'" http://bit.ly/2EWf2zK |
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It's a chaotic Friday on Capitol Hill. I'm Cate Martel with a quick recap of the morning and what's the situation with the government shutdown. Send comments, story ideas and happy thoughts to cmartel@thehill.com, @CateMartel and on Facebook. |
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| To view the 12:30 Report online --> http://bit.ly/2FWIoiy |
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The logistics are pretty interesting -- what does a government shutdown actually mean?: |
| The Hill's Timothy Cama and Lydia Wheeler explain what a government shutdown means for most agencies. How each agency knows what to do: Each federal agency has a shutdown plan written in consultation with the White House's Office of Management and Budget. http://bit.ly/2DixIJx What will continue: Major federal responsibilities -- like Social Security checks and operating the military -- would continue. But while Social Security payments would keep going out, the government would not accept new Social Security applications. Which government employees go to work: Employees deemed "essential," like those in the military and law enforcement. Those workers would still get paid, but not until after the shutdown ends. That applies to about half of the 2.1 million or so non-postal federal employees. Who is prohibited from coming to work: Everyone else. For context: During the 2013 shutdown, 850,000 individuals were furloughed per day, according to the Office of Management and Budget. Will furloughed workers get paid?: Not necessarily. Congress acted to pay those employees after previous shutdowns, but pay is not guaranteed. Breakdown of what would happen to each agency: http://bit.ly/2DixIJx |
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Will Trump go to his Mar-a-Lago resort?: |
| President Trump had been scheduled to go to Mar-a-Lago this weekend for an event marking the one-year anniversary of his presidency. But this morning, the White House announced that the president will not go if the government shuts down. http://bit.ly/2FUC2jL |
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What happens in Washington, D.C. -- YOLO mode: It's 5 o'clock, well, somewhere: |
| During the last government shutdown, bars and restaurants had government shutdown specials, especially for furloughed workers. It's too soon to know the specials, but here's a list from 2013 to give you an idea: http://bit.ly/2EVKCgX |
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*Record scratch* *Freeze frame* 'You're probably wondering how I ended up in this situation -- I'm president of the United States!' |
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| Before clicking this next story, click here for themed background music ;) --> http://bit.ly/2Dqx14n |
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One year down. Three (or seven) to go!: |
| Tomorrow marks the one-year anniversary since Donald Trump was inaugurated as president of the United States -- and what a year it's been. From day one: Trump dominated headlines, publicly feuding with rivals and pushing policies that upended the Washington consensus. A legislative high: Passing a massive tax overhaul. A legislative low: Failing to pass an ObamaCare repeal. The parts we'll remember: This year was full of constant controversies at the White House, from press secretary Sean Spicer's claim that the inauguration was the most watched ever (remember that?!) to the firestorm over Trump's alleged "shithole countries" remark. Timeline -- it's fascinating to see the year written out like this: http://bit.ly/2DlkbBb |
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Vladimir Putin. *snap* Fashion Icon. |
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| The Senate is in working to keep the government open. The House was in this morning. 2 p.m. EST: President Trump meets with his national security team. 4:10 p.m. EST: President Trump is scheduled to leave for his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida. Well: That's if the government stays open. The president will not attend an event at his resort at Mar-a-Lago Friday night if the government shuts down. http://bit.ly/2FUC2jL Midnight: The government shuts down if a spending measure isn't passed. Op-ed: Brent Budowsky writes, "If Dems stare down Trump in Dreamer shutdown showdown, they will win." http://bit.ly/2mRSpF1 Happening now: Women who were sexually abused by ex-USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar are reading victim statements. Livestream: http://bit.ly/2mTDWJI Saturday: The one-year anniversary of President Trump's inauguration. http://bit.ly/2DlkbBb Sunday: The one-year anniversary of the women's march. There will be a march this year, but it's expected to be much smaller: http://bit.ly/2DtX8qV February 21-24: The 2018 Conservative Political Action Conference. |
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| Late this morning: Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney and White House Legislative Director Marc Short held a briefing about the government shutdown. Livestream: http://bit.ly/2DqT5we 12:15 p.m. EST: President Trump speaks to March for Life participants. Livestream: http://cs.pn/2rkkgmV |
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| Today is National Popcorn Day! And as a matter of fact, the USDA's Popcorn Board (yes, that's a thing!) got new members this week! http://bit.ly/2DiFTpi |
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For everyone who either wants to or has wanted to be a Disney princess (so basically everyone): |
| Via BuzzFeed's Virginia Chamlee, here's what it actually takes to be a full-time Disney princess. http://bzfd.it/2rpn8iq |
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Putting together Ikea furniture will be the death of all of us -- this is pretty cute though: |
| Time's Cady Lang writes about how former President Barack Obama moved his daughter Malia into college. Excerpt: "I was basically useless. Everyone had seen me crying and misting up for basically the previous three weeks, so Malia, who's very thoughtful, she goes, 'Dad, you know, I've got this lamp in this box, could you put the desk lamp together?' I said, 'Sure.' It should have taken five minutes or three minutes and it had one of those little tools. It only had like four parts and I'm just sitting there, toiling at this thing for half an hour and meanwhile, Michelle has finished scrubbing and she's organizing closets and I was just pretty pathetic." Full story: http://ti.me/2mREbUI |
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| And because we could all use something light on a Friday, here's definitive evidence of why dogs are too good for us: http://bit.ly/2Bf5tcT |
