Early Friday morning marked the second time in less than a month that the United States government has shut down after failing to meet a midnight deadline, despite Senate leaders coming to a bipartisan agreement to fund the government.
The US Senate was held up from voting on the spending bill on Thursday night to fund the government as Rand Paul, R-Ky., voiced concern over the lack of budget caps. Both Republican Senate Leader Mitch McConnell and Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said they were unwilling to compromise with Paul.
The Senate will continue deliberating through the night with the hopes of sending a spending bill to the House at some point in the early morning hours.
The bill is set to keep the government funded for the next two years.
In January, the US government faced a three-day shutdown after the two parties could not come to an agreement on immigration issues.
The budget being agreed to does not include any sort of immigration reform, but Republicans have said they are willing to work with Democrats on immigration reform. Congressional Democrats are hoping to renew protections for nearly 800,000 immigrants who came to the United States as children illegally. If an agreement is not reached by March 5, those immigrants, many of whom now have families and jobs in the United States, would no longer have legal status in the US and would be subject to deportation.
Because of the lack or protection for the "Dreamers," House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said she will not vote in favor of the budget bill.
Although officially the government shutdown at midnight, it is possible it will be open for business on Friday. The House will likely immediately take up the Senate's bill. The House is expected to pass the bill, despite opposition for much of the Democratic caucus, assuming the bill can jump legislative hurdles in the Senate.
