Congressional leaders took steps over the weekend to avoid a government shutdown. This deal calls for another continuing resolution to fund parts of the government, including USDA, until March 1. The rest of the agencies would have enough money to operate until March 8. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said it will take bipartisan cooperation in both chambers of Congress to pass the CR and send it to the President’s desk before Friday’s deadline. That may be a big lift in the House where members of the Freedom Caucus want to use the government spending bill as leverage to secure the U.S. border with Mexico.
