On Politics

Tue Aug 1 2023

Marina Pitofsky | NOW reporter

Hi OnPolitics readers! Washington will be quieter as members of Congress return to their districts for the August recess.

When they come back next month, lawmakers have a monumental task ahead of them, USA TODAY's Ken Tran, Rachel Looker and Miles J. Herszenhorn report.

No pressure: When lawmakers are back on Capitol Hill, they'll have roughly three weeks until the Sept. 30 deadline to pass a federal budget.

What happens if they don't? If lawmakers can't hammer out 11 of 12 separate spending bills, the country will face a government shutdown. Lawmakers could pass what's called a "continuing resolution," which could fund the government until an agreed upon date. But that's not a permanent solution.

It's not clear whether lawmakers can reach a compromise in time. The Republican-controlled House and the Democratic-controlled Senate will have to reach agreements on a slew of spending fights. But some members of the conservative flank of the House, the House Freedom Caucus, don't seem concerned about a shutdown.

"We should not fear a government shutdown," Rep. Bob Good, R-Va., a member of the Freedom Caucus said at a press conference last week. "Most of the American people won't even miss if the government is shut down temporarily."

Every government shutdown is slightly different, but one thing is for sure: Americans across the country could quickly face the consequences.