Government Avoids Shutdown, For Now

The House approved a two-week extension of government funding, with $4 billion in cuts, on Tuesday, and the Senate is expected to quickly follow—but don’t expect the debate about a government shutdown to go away. The government is funded only through March 18, and Republicans are demanding Democrats agree to an additional $57 billion in cuts before then. The White House and Senate Democrats had tried to House Majority Leader John Boehner to agree to a 30-day extension with $8 billion in cuts, but he rejected the proposal. One Senate Republican official tells The New York Times than another temporary extension will probably be needed.