Congress primed to avert shutdown despite remaining conflicts

The Senate appears on track to prevent a government shutdown on Thursday at midnight, as Democrats and Republicans wade through last-minute impediments to a stopgap funding bill’s speedy passage.

Senators were close to finalizing an agreement on Wednesday evening that would tee up final passage of the short-term funding package on Thursday, just hours before federal cash expires, according to a source. Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), a fiscal hawk notorious for blocking spending bills, also indicated that he wouldn’t object to quickly passing the continuing resolution, which would keep the government funded through Dec. 3.