White House urges Congress to avoid shutdown with short-term funding bill

The White House on Thursday asked Congress to adopt a short-term funding extension to avert a government shutdown, a spokesperson for the Office of Management and Budget confirmed to Axios.

Driving the news: "Although the crucial work continues to reach a bipartisan, bicameral agreement on fiscal year 2024 appropriations bills, it is clear that a short-term continuing resolution (CR) will be needed next month," the spokesperson said.

• The Washington Post first reported on the White House request.
• The White House also urged Congress to include other special budget fixes, known as anomalies, in any funding stopgaps.
• "We urge Congress to include these anomalies along with the critical emergency supplemental needs the administration transmitted earlier this month in any forthcoming CR, as they have done on a bipartisan basis many times in the past," the spokesperson said.

Zoom in: President Biden earlier this month unveiled a $24 billion supplemental funding request to Congress, which included additional funding for Ukraine and other foreign aid.

• It included $13 billion in defense spending and $7.3 billion in economic and humanitarian help for Ukraine.

The big picture: Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said Wednesday that the government funding negotiations are a "pretty big mess."

• "The Speaker and the president reached an agreement which I supported in connection with raising the debt ceiling to set spending levels for next year," he said.
• "The House then turned around and passed spending levels that were below that level," he added.
• House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) floated a possible short-term government funding measure during a House Republican Conference call earlier this month.

What's next: The government is on track to shut down on Oct. 1 if a new budget or stopgap isn't passed by Sept. 30.

Go deeper: House Republicans' biggest appropriations landmines