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Budget Negotiators Close on Debt, Agency Spending Deal

Associated Press

   The Trump administration and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi are on the cusp
   of the critical debt and budget deal, one that would amount to a
   hard-fought, against-the-odds victory for Washington pragmatists
   seeking to avoid politically dangerous tumult over must-do fiscal
   deadlines.

   Aides on both sides of the talks say the tentative deal would restore
   the government's ability to borrow into the next administration and
   build upon recent large budget gains for both the Pentagon and domestic
   agencies. The deal would mostly eliminate the risk of a repeat
   government shutdown this fall.
   The agreement on an outline for $1.3 trillion in agency spending would
   represent a win for lawmakers eager to return Washington to a more
   predictable path amid political tumult and polarization, defense hawks
   determined to cement big military increases and Democrats who oppose
   spending cuts.
   The aides who spoke about the emerging deal did so on the condition of
   anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly before a
   deal was final. A person close to the talks said final obstacles are
   down to technical issues.
   It comes under the radar of the political tumult consuming Washington
   and the already blazing 2020 presidential campaign.

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