Congress and the White House are beginning to panic about passing a short-term extension that would fund the government past the December 8 deadline to avoid a government shutdown.  Looking to resolve the situation, the president and congressional leaders will meet early next week and try to hammer out a compromise. Complicating matters is the Democrats' insistence that an amendment authorizing the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA) be included in the short-term funding deal.  Trump and Republicans want to deal with the issue separately before the March 8 expiration date of the program. Politico: The so-called Big Four – Speaker Paul Ryan, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer – haven't even agreed on total government spending levels that would allow appropriators to write a massive funding bill for the rest of the fiscal year. That means a...(Read Full Post)