
The Huffington Post reports:
With just days left in the legislative calendar before government funding expires, Senate Democrats are increasingly confident they'll be able to net long-term increases in domestic spending.Because for some politicians there's never a good time to cut spending.
The strategy came into focus this past week, after Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said he would be open to funding the government on a short-term basis to allow for broader negotiations. Senate Democratic leaders have said they're fine with such an arrangement, but only if the context for subsequent talks is clear: They would only back a deal that alleviates spending cuts, or sequestration; that does so equally for defense and non-defense accounts; and that doesn't include extraneous provisions attacking Democratic priorities (like Planned Parenthood funding).