Dems: Debt deal avoids shutdown fights for two years

As they try to sell the debt-ceiling deal to their angry members, Democrats are emphasizing that the deal has the side benefit of largely reducing the chances of any further government shutdown battle for the rest of Obama's first term. 

That's because the bill outlines spending for the annual appropriations process and therefore removes the type of conflict that almost shut down the government in April.

House GOP leaders had promised their rank-and-file members "three bites of the apple" this year in which they would be able to drive down federal spending: an 2011 spending fight, a debt-ceiling battle, and a 2012 fight. A showdown over 2012 spending had loomed over the end of the fiscal year — Sept. 30.

As part of the negotiation, however, Democrats insisted that the debt-ceiling deal "deems" the 2012 and 2013 spending levels to be in place, as if a budget resolution has been passed by both chambers this year and next year.

This means that the GOP cannot drive the overall spending level, known as 302(a) allocations, below the $7 billion and $3 billion in cuts outlined in the deal for those fiscal years. It could still threaten a shutdown over policy riders, but that is considered less likely.

"While the various appropriations subcommittees will still need to reach agreement on how to meet their respective spending targets, and while it is always possible for congressional Republicans to try to hold up the FY12 spending bills over extraneous policy riders or other matters, the legislation significantly reduces the chances of a sequel to last spring’s government shutdown drama," an aide said.

The House has been passing its appropriations bills on the assumption of a $31 billion cut and will not be re-passing any bills. No decision has yet been made on how to redistribute the added funds to each of the 12 bills, an aide said. 

Those 302(b) allocations to the individual bills will be the subject of House and Senate negotiation likely starting this week if the debt-ceiling deal passes, a Democratic aide explained.

The Senate Appropriations Committee will begin to move the remaining 11 bills it needs to pass in September if the deal goes through, but it is unlikely to be able to complete them all. This would mean more continuing resolutions as the committees seek more time to complete their bills, aides said.

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