Congress Rushes to Avert a Shutdown as Conservatives Fume Over Plan

The Senate is set to kick off action shortly on a plan to stave off a government shutdown Friday night, extend funding for federal agencies and buy time for appropriators to write annual spending bills.Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker Mike Johnson unveiled the plan on Sunday night following their agreement earlier this month to set discretionary spending for fiscal year 2024 at $1.66 trillion. As appropriators work to flesh out all the details of the spending plan, the “cle