Federal government shutdown averted
By David Lightman, William Douglas, McClatchy Newspapers
Congress and the White House late Friday barely beat the clock and averted a partial government shutdown, agreeing to a last-minute deal to cut at least $38.5 billion from federal spending.
Congress will not vote on the deal, which would fund the government for the last six months of the fiscal year, until next week. In the meantime, negotiators agreed to a shorter-term stopgap spending plan to keep the government running through Thursday.
Approval was expected late Friday to keep the government open past midnight.