The impending Government Shutdown

Of course they want a compromise. They aren't dumb. They just won't want to be a part of said compromise.

It's drawing straws to be who gets tea party fall-out.

My question is more to the Democrats in office and why these kinds of battles are always fought in Republican terms.

Michele is the tea party queen (she started the tea party caucus) and she's saying "compromise already, let's get this over with and move on to bigger things."

Bachmann said that she “cannot vote for the current compromise that we’re looking at. I don’t think that it’s sufficient, because primarily, it doesn’t include the defunding of Obamacare.”

why is it, that whenever i read anything about politicians. i'm reminded of the warning that Frank Zappa gave to parents in the liner notes for the album Freak Out

"If your children ever figure out just how lame you really are, they'll murder you in your sleep"

But I don't actually want a shutdown.

The likelihood of a war-time federal government shutdown—the first in American history—diminished dramatically on Friday night as all parties began reviewing, with the goal of approving, a broad array of cuts and a short-term bill to keep the government operating while the details are put into legislative language for full congressional action next week.

While leadership staff insist there is no deal yet, that caution belies significant progress in narrowing long-standing differences and the widening assumption in both parties that a shutdown will be averted and all that remains unknown is the precise procedural steps that will walk everyone back from the abyss.

GETTING CLOSE TO A DEAL
A Democratic source tells TPM that both sides are close to putting together a budget deal with $39 billion in spending cuts and agreements to remove the controversial policy riders Republicans were fighting for. That's a billion more in cuts than Democrats were saying all day today was their maximum number. So some additional concessions apparently made there by the Democrats.

This isn't a done deal yet, our source says. But the negotiators for both sides are sold on it, and hoping to make it work.

Speaker Boehner's office is locked down in a leadership meeting, presumably as Boehner pitches the deal to his top lieutenants.

More soon ...

I think it comes from the conference -- that they're spooked that they'll get blamed and they're looking for a graceful way out.

Could still go south of course but I think that's where things are now.

Remember that this is all about the 2011 fiscal year ending in Oct. I think that all parties (the Dems, the Repubs and the Teaparty folks) will decide to punt and move on to the 2012 budget.