The Senate is back in session today; the House of Representatives will return on 12 August. Top of the Congressional agenda will be funding the federal government for FY 2024 before the fiscal year ends on 30 September. So far, no appropriations bills have been passed; the House has taken up one (Military Construction) the Senate has taken up none. 

Given that none of the 12 regular appropriations bills have passed,  the first order of business will be cobbling together a continuing resolution (CR) for a short-term extension of government funding. Typically, a CR is just an extension of the current baseline spending, but there are a couple of issues that will force some “cobbling”. Those include disaster relief for...