The implied probability of a government shutdown on October 1 receded slightly after appropriators huddled yesterday for a bipartisan and bicameral meeting to discuss the funding deadline.
- House Democratic appropriator Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) said, “Everybody is very cognizant of the deadline.” House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) said House leadership may let bipartisan talks go further than March, when Democrats swallowed a partisan funding extension: “We want to give [Republican appropriator Tom Cole] the latitude to get the agreement first...”
- Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) said he expects the House to sign off on a “fairly clean” stopgap measure to punt funding into November or December.
- The Hill notes Thune and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), "have gotten the message that Democrats will only accept a clean continuing resolution, without major policy riders or significant spending cuts..."
- However, President Donald Trump’s position remains unclear. Punchbowl notes that, “Top Republicans recall that Trump oversaw the longest government shutdown in U.S. history back in 2018-19,” and his OMB Director, Russell Vought, may see a showdown with Democrats as another route to coopting the pursestrings from Congress.
- Republicans may also overestimate Democrats’ willingness to accept a ‘clean’ CR, especially considering they have framed a potential lapse in appropriations as a ‘Republican shutdown’. Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) told reporters: “How do you say ‘clean CR,’ then Russ Vought gets to pick and choose?”
Figure 1: Government Shutdown by October 1 
Source: Polymarket