Reid: We have a deal -- almost
Parties have agreed on a number; Republican insistence on blocking federal funding for Planned Parenthood is the only obstacle, Senate leader says.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said Thursday morning that he and House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, have agreed on a deal to cut about $38 billion from current spending levels, but added that Republican insistence on including a policy rider blocking federal funding for Planned Parenthood, is the only stumbling block.
"We agreed on a number last night," Reid told reporters in the Senate Press Gallery. He said he is "really upset that this government is going to shut down" because of GOP efforts to limit access to abortion.
A spokesman for Boehner has challenged Reid's account, saying that continuing differences over spending cuts, not the abortion rider, remain the problem.
NEXT STORY: OPM: We'll Be (Mostly) Open During Shutdown