By David Morgan and Makini Brice

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. government looked all but certain to enter a partial shutdown on Sunday as House Republicans and Senate Democrats held to starkly different courses on funding.

The Democratic-majority Senate planned another procedural vote on a stopgap bill to fund the government through Nov. 17, which has been moving forward with broad bipartisan support, which the Republican-controlled House of Representatives has rejected so far.

House Republican lawmakers on Friday blocked their own party’s stopgap bill, known as a “continuing resolution” or CR. That bill included multiple conservative policy additions that Democrats opposed, and had no chance of winning the Senate support it would need to become law.

Infighting among Republicans who control the House by a 221-212 margin has pushed the United States to the brink of its fourth partial shutdown in a decade, as the chamber has been unable to pass legislation that would keep the government open beyond the Oct. 1 start of the fiscal year.

Hundreds of thousands of federal employees will lack the funding to do their jobs if the two chambers do not send a spending bill for Democratic President Joe Biden to sign into law by 12:01 a.m. (0401 GMT) on Sunday.

Federal agencies have already drawn up detailed plans that spell out what services must continue, like airport screening and border patrols, and what must shut down, like scientific research and nutrition aid to 7 million poor mothers.

Most of the government’s 4 million-plus employees would not get paid, whether they were working or not.

House Republicans emerging from a closed-door party meeting on Saturday said they expected to vote for a measures that would ensure that members of the military, border security and the Federal Aviation Administration were paid during the shutdown. Those would only take effect if the Senate passed it and Biden signed it into law.

“We will vote to keep our troops paid and fully operational,” said Representative Darrell Issa.

Some hardline Republicans said a shutdown was worth it to achieve their goals.

“I fear the majority of the conference is willing to do anything to avoid the discomfort of a potential government shutdown,” Representative Bob Good told reporters. “If we don’t have the willingness to say ‘no’ and the resolve to say ‘no,’ the Senate and the White House will not accept any spending cuts.”

CREDIT CONCERNS

The standoff comes just months after Congress brought the federal government to the brink of defaulting on its $31.4 trillion debt. The drama has raised worries on Wall Street, where the Moody’s ratings agency has warned it could damage U.S. creditworthiness.

Congress typically passes stopgap spending bills to buy more time to negotiate the detailed legislation that sets funding for federal programs.

This year, a group of Republicans has blocked action in the House as they have pressed to tighten immigration and cut spending below levels agreed to in the debt-ceiling standoff last spring.

On Friday, 21 Republicans joined with Democrats to defeat legislation that reflected those demands, saying the chamber should focus instead on passing detailed spending bills for the full fiscal year, even if it leads to a shutdown in the near term.

That angered other Republicans, who said they had blown an opportunity to advance conservative policies.

“There’s a lot of frustration growing with the 21 individuals who chose to vote ‘no’ on what was a very good plan,” Republican Representative Nicole Malliotakis of New York said on Friday.

Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said on Friday the chamber might try to rely on Democrats to help pass a stopgap bill that would continue funding at current levels, even though that could prompt a challenge to his leadership from hardliners.

The Senate is due to hold a procedural vote at 1:00 p.m. (1700 GMT) to extend government funding through Nov. 17. It enjoys wide support from Republicans and Democrats, but the chamber’s arcane rules mean that a vote on final passage could be delayed until Tuesday.

Even if that passes, the two chambers would have to resolve their differences before sending any bill to Biden’s desk. That could pose another hurdle, as McCarthy said he opposed $6 billion in Ukraine aid included in the Senate bill.

“We continue to try to find a way out of this,” he said on Friday.

(Reporting by David Morgan and Makini Brice, Writing by Andy Sullivan; Editing by Scott Malone and Andrea Ricci)

By David Morgan and Makini Brice

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. government looked all but certain to enter a partial shutdown on Sunday as House Republicans and Senate Democrats held to starkly different courses on funding.

The Democratic-majority Senate planned another procedural vote on a stopgap bill to fund the government through Nov. 17, which has been moving forward with broad bipartisan support, which the Republican-controlled House of Representatives has rejected so far.

House Republican lawmakers on Friday blocked their own party’s stopgap bill, known as a “continuing resolution” or CR. That bill included multiple conservative policy additions that Democrats opposed, and had no chance of winning the Senate support it would need to become law.

Infighting among Republicans who control the House by a 221-212 margin has pushed the United States to the brink of its fourth partial shutdown in a decade, as the chamber has been unable to pass legislation that would keep the government open beyond the Oct. 1 start of the fiscal year.

Hundreds of thousands of federal employees will lack the funding to do their jobs if the two chambers do not send a spending bill for Democratic President Joe Biden to sign into law by 12:01 a.m. (0401 GMT) on Sunday.

Federal agencies have already drawn up detailed plans that spell out what services must continue, like airport screening and border patrols, and what must shut down, like scientific research and nutrition aid to 7 million poor mothers.

Most of the government’s 4 million-plus employees would not get paid, whether they were working or not.

House Republicans emerging from a closed-door party meeting on Saturday said they expected to vote for a measures that would ensure that members of the military, border security and the Federal Aviation Administration were paid during the shutdown. Those would only take effect if the Senate passed it and Biden signed it into law.

“We will vote to keep our troops paid and fully operational,” said Representative Darrell Issa.

Some hardline Republicans said a shutdown was worth it to achieve their goals.

“I fear the majority of the conference is willing to do anything to avoid the discomfort of a potential government shutdown,” Representative Bob Good told reporters. “If we don’t have the willingness to say ‘no’ and the resolve to say ‘no,’ the Senate and the White House will not accept any spending cuts.”

CREDIT CONCERNS

The standoff comes just months after Congress brought the federal government to the brink of defaulting on its $31.4 trillion debt. The drama has raised worries on Wall Street, where the Moody’s ratings agency has warned it could damage U.S. creditworthiness.

Congress typically passes stopgap spending bills to buy more time to negotiate the detailed legislation that sets funding for federal programs.

This year, a group of Republicans has blocked action in the House as they have pressed to tighten immigration and cut spending below levels agreed to in the debt-ceiling standoff last spring.

On Friday, 21 Republicans joined with Democrats to defeat legislation that reflected those demands, saying the chamber should focus instead on passing detailed spending bills for the full fiscal year, even if it leads to a shutdown in the near term.

That angered other Republicans, who said they had blown an opportunity to advance conservative policies.

“There’s a lot of frustration growing with the 21 individuals who chose to vote ‘no’ on what was a very good plan,” Republican Representative Nicole Malliotakis of New York said on Friday.

Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said on Friday the chamber might try to rely on Democrats to help pass a stopgap bill that would continue funding at current levels, even though that could prompt a challenge to his leadership from hardliners.

The Senate is due to hold a procedural vote at 1:00 p.m. (1700 GMT) to extend government funding through Nov. 17. It enjoys wide support from Republicans and Democrats, but the chamber’s arcane rules mean that a vote on final passage could be delayed until Tuesday.

Even if that passes, the two chambers would have to resolve their differences before sending any bill to Biden’s desk. That could pose another hurdle, as McCarthy said he opposed $6 billion in Ukraine aid included in the Senate bill.

“We continue to try to find a way out of this,” he said on Friday.

(Reporting by David Morgan and Makini Brice, Writing by Andy Sullivan; Editing by Scott Malone and Andrea Ricci)

By David Morgan and Makini Brice

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is expected to urge Republicans on Saturday to back a short-term funding bill with disaster relief that could avert a partial government shutdown by gaining support from Democrats, a source familiar with the plan said.

The source, who asked not to be named in order to discuss internal deliberations, described the move as a “Hail Mary pass.” It will test McCarthy’s hold over his narrow 221-212 majority.

Republican lawmakers on Friday blocked another stopgap bill, known as a “continuing resolution” or CR. That bill included multiple conservative policy additions that Democrats opposed, while the new bill likely would be a so-called clean CR without those additions, which could win Democratic support.

Infighting among Republicans who control the House of Representatives has pushed the United States to the brink of its fourth partial shutdown in a decade, as the chamber has been unable to pass legislation that would keep the government open beyond the Oct. 1 start of the fiscal year.

On the other side of the Capitol, the Democratic-controlled Senate is due to advance a stopgap funding bill, but a final vote might not come for days.

Hundreds of thousands of federal employees will lack the funding to do their jobs if the two chambers do not send a spending bill for Democratic President Joe Biden to sign into law by 12:01 a.m. (0401 GMT) on Sunday.

Federal agencies have already drawn up detailed plans that spell out what services must continue, like airport screening and border patrols, and what must shut down, like scientific research and nutrition aid to 7 million poor mothers.

Most of the government’s 4 million-plus employees would not get paid, whether they were working or not.

In Atlanta, festivities for former President Jimmy Carter’s 99th birthday were moved up from Sunday to Saturday to avoid disruption, according to local media.

The standoff comes just months after Congress brought the federal government to the brink of defaulting on its $31.4 trillion debt. The drama has raised worries on Wall Street, where the Moody’s ratings agency has warned it could damage U.S. creditworthiness.

Congress typically passes stopgap spending bills to buy more time to negotiate the detailed legislation that sets funding for federal programs.

This year, a group of Republicans has blocked action in the House as they have pressed to tighten immigration and cut spending below levels agreed to in the debt-ceiling standoff last spring.

On Friday, 21 Republicans joined with Democrats to defeat legislation that reflected those demands, saying the chamber should focus instead on passing detailed spending bills for the full fiscal year, even if it leads to a shutdown in the near term.

That angered other Republicans, who said they had blown an opportunity to advance conservative policies.

“There’s a lot of frustration growing with the 21 individuals who chose to vote ‘no’ on what was a very good plan,” Republican Representative Nicole Malliotakis of New York said on Friday.

McCarthy said on Friday the chamber might try to rely on Democrats to help pass a stopgap bill that would continue funding at current levels, even though that could prompt a challenge to his leadership from hardliners. He did not provide further details.

The Senate is due to hold a procedural vote at 1:00 p.m. (1700 GMT) to extend government funding through Nov. 17. It enjoys wide support from Republicans and Democrats, but the chamber’s numerous hurdles mean that a vote on final passage could be delayed until Tuesday.

Even if that passes, the two chambers would have to resolve their differences before sending any bill to Biden’s desk. That could pose another hurdle, as McCarthy said he opposed $6 billion in Ukraine aid included in the Senate bill.

“We continue to try to find a way out of this,” he said on Friday.

(Reporting by David Morgan and Makini Brice, Writing by Andy Sullivan; Editing by Scott Malone and Andrea Ricci)

By David Morgan and Makini Brice

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is expected to urge Republicans on Saturday to back a short-term funding bill with disaster relief that could avert a partial government shutdown by gaining support from Democrats, a source familiar with the plan said.

The source, who asked not to be named in order to discuss internal deliberations, described the move as a “Hail Mary pass.” It will test McCarthy’s hold over his narrow 221-212 majority.

Republican lawmakers on Friday blocked another stopgap bill, known as a “continuing resolution” or CR. That bill included multiple conservative policy additions that Democrats opposed, while the new bill likely would be a so-called clean CR without those additions, which could win Democratic support.

Infighting among Republicans who control the House of Representatives has pushed the United States to the brink of its fourth partial shutdown in a decade, as the chamber has been unable to pass legislation that would keep the government open beyond the Oct. 1 start of the fiscal year.

On the other side of the Capitol, the Democratic-controlled Senate is due to advance a stopgap funding bill, but a final vote might not come for days.

Hundreds of thousands of federal employees will lack the funding to do their jobs if the two chambers do not send a spending bill for Democratic President Joe Biden to sign into law by 12:01 a.m. (0401 GMT) on Sunday.

Federal agencies have already drawn up detailed plans that spell out what services must continue, like airport screening and border patrols, and what must shut down, like scientific research and nutrition aid to 7 million poor mothers.

Most of the government’s 4 million-plus employees would not get paid, whether they were working or not.

In Atlanta, festivities for former President Jimmy Carter’s 99th birthday were moved up from Sunday to Saturday to avoid disruption, according to local media.

The standoff comes just months after Congress brought the federal government to the brink of defaulting on its $31.4 trillion debt. The drama has raised worries on Wall Street, where the Moody’s ratings agency has warned it could damage U.S. creditworthiness.

Congress typically passes stopgap spending bills to buy more time to negotiate the detailed legislation that sets funding for federal programs.

This year, a group of Republicans has blocked action in the House as they have pressed to tighten immigration and cut spending below levels agreed to in the debt-ceiling standoff last spring.

On Friday, 21 Republicans joined with Democrats to defeat legislation that reflected those demands, saying the chamber should focus instead on passing detailed spending bills for the full fiscal year, even if it leads to a shutdown in the near term.

That angered other Republicans, who said they had blown an opportunity to advance conservative policies.

“There’s a lot of frustration growing with the 21 individuals who chose to vote ‘no’ on what was a very good plan,” Republican Representative Nicole Malliotakis of New York said on Friday.

McCarthy said on Friday the chamber might try to rely on Democrats to help pass a stopgap bill that would continue funding at current levels, even though that could prompt a challenge to his leadership from hardliners. He did not provide further details.

The Senate is due to hold a procedural vote at 1:00 p.m. (1700 GMT) to extend government funding through Nov. 17. It enjoys wide support from Republicans and Democrats, but the chamber’s numerous hurdles mean that a vote on final passage could be delayed until Tuesday.

Even if that passes, the two chambers would have to resolve their differences before sending any bill to Biden’s desk. That could pose another hurdle, as McCarthy said he opposed $6 billion in Ukraine aid included in the Senate bill.

“We continue to try to find a way out of this,” he said on Friday.

(Reporting by David Morgan and Makini Brice, Writing by Andy Sullivan; Editing by Scott Malone and Andrea Ricci)

By David Morgan and Makini Brice

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is expected to urge Republicans on Saturday to back a short-term funding bill with disaster relief that could avert a partial government shutdown by gaining support from Democrats, a source familiar with the plan said.

The source, who asked not to be named in order to discuss internal deliberations, described the move as a “Hail Mary pass.” It will test McCarthy’s hold over his narrow 221-212 majority.

Republican lawmakers on Friday blocked another stopgap bill, known as a “continuing resolution” or CR. That bill included multiple conservative policy additions that Democrats opposed, while the new bill likely would be a so-called clean CR without those additions, which could win Democratic support.

Infighting among Republicans who control the House of Representatives has pushed the United States to the brink of its fourth partial shutdown in a decade, as the chamber has been unable to pass legislation that would keep the government open beyond the Oct. 1 start of the fiscal year.

On the other side of the Capitol, the Democratic-controlled Senate is due to advance a stopgap funding bill, but a final vote might not come for days.

Hundreds of thousands of federal employees will lack the funding to do their jobs if the two chambers do not send a spending bill for Democratic President Joe Biden to sign into law by 12:01 a.m. (0401 GMT) on Sunday.

Federal agencies have already drawn up detailed plans that spell out what services must continue, like airport screening and border patrols, and what must shut down, like scientific research and nutrition aid to 7 million poor mothers.

Most of the government’s 4 million-plus employees would not get paid, whether they were working or not.

In Atlanta, festivities for former President Jimmy Carter’s 99th birthday were moved up from Sunday to Saturday to avoid disruption, according to local media.

The standoff comes just months after Congress brought the federal government to the brink of defaulting on its $31.4 trillion debt. The drama has raised worries on Wall Street, where the Moody’s ratings agency has warned it could damage U.S. creditworthiness.

Congress typically passes stopgap spending bills to buy more time to negotiate the detailed legislation that sets funding for federal programs.

This year, a group of Republicans has blocked action in the House as they have pressed to tighten immigration and cut spending below levels agreed to in the debt-ceiling standoff last spring.

On Friday, 21 Republicans joined with Democrats to defeat legislation that reflected those demands, saying the chamber should focus instead on passing detailed spending bills for the full fiscal year, even if it leads to a shutdown in the near term.

That angered other Republicans, who said they had blown an opportunity to advance conservative policies.

“There’s a lot of frustration growing with the 21 individuals who chose to vote ‘no’ on what was a very good plan,” Republican Representative Nicole Malliotakis of New York said on Friday.

McCarthy said on Friday the chamber might try to rely on Democrats to help pass a stopgap bill that would continue funding at current levels, even though that could prompt a challenge to his leadership from hardliners. He did not provide further details.

The Senate is due to hold a procedural vote at 1:00 p.m. (1700 GMT) to extend government funding through Nov. 17. It enjoys wide support from Republicans and Democrats, but the chamber’s numerous hurdles mean that a vote on final passage could be delayed until Tuesday.

Even if that passes, the two chambers would have to resolve their differences before sending any bill to Biden’s desk. That could pose another hurdle, as McCarthy said he opposed $6 billion in Ukraine aid included in the Senate bill.

“We continue to try to find a way out of this,” he said on Friday.

(Reporting by David Morgan and Makini Brice, Writing by Andy Sullivan; Editing by Scott Malone and Andrea Ricci)

By Kanishka Singh

(Reuters) – Fresno, California, became only the second U.S. city to ban caste discrimination after a unanimous city council vote that added caste and indigeneity as two new protected categories into its municipal code.

THE TAKE

A movement against caste discrimination has picked up some momentum in recent months in North America. Earlier this year, Seattle became the first U.S. city to outlaw caste discrimination after a city council vote and Toronto’s school board became the first in Canada to recognize that caste discrimination existed in the city’s schools.

WHAT’S NEXT

American activists opposing caste discrimination aim to fight against the practise throughout the United States.

A bill in California aimed at banning caste discrimination in the entire state was passed by the state Assembly in late August and by the state Senate in early September with a near unanimous vote. It is now at the desk of Governor Gavin Newsom.

If signed into law, it would make California the first U.S. state to ban caste discrimination.

CONTEXT

The caste system is among the world’s oldest forms of rigid social stratification. It dates back thousands of years and allows many privileges to upper castes but represses lower castes. The Dalit community is on the lowest rung of the Hindu caste system; members have been treated as “untouchables.”

India outlawed caste discrimination over 70 years ago, yet several studies in recent years show that bias persists. One study found people from lower castes were underrepresented in higher-paying jobs.

Dalits still face widespread abuse across India, where their attempts at upward social mobility have at times been violently put down.

Debate over the caste system is contentious and intertwined with religion.

Activists opposing caste discrimination say it is no different from other forms of discrimination like racism and hence should be outlawed.

Opponents of such a step in the U.S. say that since U.S. laws already ban ancestry discrimination, an action of this type becomes meaningless and only serves to stigmatize the entire community – mostly Hindus and South Asians – with a broad brush.

(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Michael Perry)

By Andy Sullivan and David Morgan

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Lawmakers return to the U.S. Congress on Saturday with no clear path to resolving a squabble that appears likely to close wide swaths of the federal government, from national parks to financial regulation, in less than 18 hours.

Infighting among Republicans who control the House of Representatives has pushed the United States to the brink of its fourth partial shutdown in a decade, as the chamber has been unable to pass legislation that would keep the government open beyond the Oct. 1 start of the fiscal year.

On the other side of the Capitol, the Democratic-controlled Senate is due to advance a stopgap funding bill, but a final vote might not come for days.

Hundreds of thousands of federal employees will lack the funding to do their jobs if the two chambers do not send a spending bill for Democratic President Joe Biden to sign into law by 12:01 a.m. (0401 GMT) on Sunday.

Federal agencies have already drawn up detailed plans that spell out what services must continue, like airport screening and border patrols, and what must shut down, like scientific research and nutrition aid to 7 million poor mothers.

Most of the government’s 4 million-plus employees would not get paid, whether they were working or not.

In Atlanta, festivities for former president Jimmy Carter’s 99th birthday were moved up from Sunday to Saturday to avoid disruption, according to local media.

The standoff comes just months after Congress brought the federal government to the brink of defaulting on its $31.4 trillion debt. The drama has raised worries on Wall Street, where the Moody’s ratings agency has warned it could damage U.S. creditworthiness.

Congress typically passes stopgap spending bills to buy more time to negotiate the detailed legislation that sets funding for federal programs.

This year, a group of Republicans has blocked action in the House as they have pressed to tighten immigration and cut spending below levels agreed to in the debt-ceiling standoff last spring.

On Friday, 21 Republicans joined with Democrats to defeat legislation that reflected those demands, saying the chamber should focus instead on passing detailed spending bills for the full fiscal year, even if it leads to a shutdown in the near term.

That angered other Republicans, who said they had blown an opportunity to advance conservative policies.

“There’s a lot of frustration growing with the 21 individuals who chose to vote ‘no’ on what was a very good plan,” Republican Representative Nicole Malliotakis of New York said on Friday.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said the chamber might try to rely on Democrats to help pass a stopgap bill that would continue funding at current levels, even though that could prompt a challenge to his leadership from hardliners. He did not provide further details.

The Senate is due to hold a procedural vote at 1:00 p.m. (1700 GMT) to extend government funding through Nov. 17. It enjoys wide support from Republicans and Democrats, but the chamber’s numerous hurdles mean that a vote on final passage could be delayed until Tuesday.

Even if that passes, the two chambers would have to resolve their differences before sending any bill to Biden’s desk. That could pose another hurdle, as McCarthy said he opposed $6 billion in Ukraine aid included in the Senate bill.

“We continue to try to find a way out of this,” he said on Friday.

(Reporting by Andy Sullivan and David Morgan; Editing by Sonali Paul)

By Andy Sullivan and David Morgan

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Lawmakers return to the U.S. Congress on Saturday with no clear path to resolving a squabble that appears likely to close wide swaths of the federal government, from national parks to financial regulation, in less than 18 hours.

Infighting among Republicans who control the House of Representatives has pushed the United States to the brink of its fourth partial shutdown in a decade, as the chamber has been unable to pass legislation that would keep the government open beyond the Oct. 1 start of the fiscal year.

On the other side of the Capitol, the Democratic-controlled Senate is due to advance a stopgap funding bill, but a final vote might not come for days.

Hundreds of thousands of federal employees will lack the funding to do their jobs if the two chambers do not send a spending bill for Democratic President Joe Biden to sign into law by 12:01 a.m. (0401 GMT) on Sunday.

Federal agencies have already drawn up detailed plans that spell out what services must continue, like airport screening and border patrols, and what must shut down, like scientific research and nutrition aid to 7 million poor mothers.

Most of the government’s 4 million-plus employees would not get paid, whether they were working or not.

In Atlanta, festivities for former president Jimmy Carter’s 99th birthday were moved up from Sunday to Saturday to avoid disruption, according to local media.

The standoff comes just months after Congress brought the federal government to the brink of defaulting on its $31.4 trillion debt. The drama has raised worries on Wall Street, where the Moody’s ratings agency has warned it could damage U.S. creditworthiness.

Congress typically passes stopgap spending bills to buy more time to negotiate the detailed legislation that sets funding for federal programs.

This year, a group of Republicans has blocked action in the House as they have pressed to tighten immigration and cut spending below levels agreed to in the debt-ceiling standoff last spring.

On Friday, 21 Republicans joined with Democrats to defeat legislation that reflected those demands, saying the chamber should focus instead on passing detailed spending bills for the full fiscal year, even if it leads to a shutdown in the near term.

That angered other Republicans, who said they had blown an opportunity to advance conservative policies.

“There’s a lot of frustration growing with the 21 individuals who chose to vote ‘no’ on what was a very good plan,” Republican Representative Nicole Malliotakis of New York said on Friday.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said the chamber might try to rely on Democrats to help pass a stopgap bill that would continue funding at current levels, even though that could prompt a challenge to his leadership from hardliners. He did not provide further details.

The Senate is due to hold a procedural vote at 1:00 p.m. (1700 GMT) to extend government funding through Nov. 17. It enjoys wide support from Republicans and Democrats, but the chamber’s numerous hurdles mean that a vote on final passage could be delayed until Tuesday.

Even if that passes, the two chambers would have to resolve their differences before sending any bill to Biden’s desk. That could pose another hurdle, as McCarthy said he opposed $6 billion in Ukraine aid included in the Senate bill.

“We continue to try to find a way out of this,” he said on Friday.

(Reporting by Andy Sullivan and David Morgan; Editing by Sonali Paul)

By Joseph Ax

(Reuters) – Shortly after Wednesday’s second Republican presidential debate concluded, California Governor Gavin Newsom was holding court in the so-called “spin room,” bouncing from one network to another to tout Democratic President Joe Biden as the real winner of the evening.

It was an increasingly familiar position for Newsom, who has emerged as perhaps the Biden re-election campaign’s most visible representative.

Newsom’s role as Biden’s cheerleader-in-chief has also boosted his own national profile ahead of 2028, when he is widely expected to consider a White House run.

Whether Biden wins in 2024 or not, Democrats will need a new standard-bearer in 2028, with many in the party calling for a younger, more energetic leader. Newsom is near the top of a list that includes Vice President Kamala Harris, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer and Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, among others.

Newsom has remained in the spotlight since the debate. On Thursday, he signed a bill raising the minimum wage for the state’s half-million fast food workers, a major victory for labor leaders. The news on Friday of U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein’s death meant Newsom will have the job of naming a replacement to help protect Democrats’ slim Senate majority.

While the governor has repeatedly denied any interest in usurping Biden as the party’s presumptive nominee next year, he would be among the leading alternatives alongside Harris – a fellow Californian – if the 80-year-old Biden were forced to step aside.

“This is a win-win,” said Steven Maviglio, a veteran Democratic strategist in California. “It benefits Biden, and it benefits Newsom.”

Newsom’s office and his political action committee did not respond to requests for comment.

Newsom made headlines last year when he urged Democrats to take a more combative tack, saying the party was getting “destroyed” on messaging by Republicans.

He has taken his own advice to heart. In November, Newsom and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who is seeking the Republican presidential nomination, will meet in an unusual one-on-one televised debate, with Fox News host Sean Hannity moderating.

‘DRY RUN’

Newsom, elected twice as governor of the country’s most populous state, has spent much of 2023 building a national network of supporters. In March, he launched a political action committee, Campaign for Democracy, with $10 million targeting conservative states such as Alabama and Arkansas.

In recent weeks, Newsom has signed or promised to sign a flurry of bills passed by California’s Democratic-majority legislature, including a first-in-the-nation excise tax on gun and ammunition sales and a requirement that large corporations disclose their carbon footprint.

But he has also vetoed a few bills backed by progressives, including one that would have barred driverless heavy-duty trucks and another that would have required judges to consider parental acceptance of children’s gender identities in deciding custody cases.

Jane Kim, the California director of the liberal Working Families Party, said Newsom deserves credit for many of his achievements. However, she said progressives wish he had done more to push liberal priorities such as single-payer healthcare, a policy he ran on in 2018.

“We’ve seen him thread that needle, because it’s clear he has an eye to a more national profile, not just California voters,” she said.

Newsom’s decision on Feinstein’s replacement could be politically fraught.

He has previously said he would elevate a Black woman if the post became vacant. But he has also said he would not pick one of the candidates running for the seat in 2024, disappointing supporters of U.S. Representative Barbara Lee, who is vying with several other Democrats.

While Newsom has touted California’s success in advancing labor unions, climate protections, gun safety and social justice, he would face some significant obstacles in running for national office.

Republicans often portray California as a bastion of leftist extremism. Critics point to persistent homelessness and a lack of affordable housing in some of the state’s biggest cities.

DeSantis referred to his November debate with Newsom at an event in Long Beach, California, on Friday, calling the state “the Petri dish for leftism in this country.”

Newsom also is a white man in a party whose voters are eager to elevate women and candidates of color, especially after Biden’s tenure, said Eric Schickler, a political science professor at the University of California in Berkeley.

“Often when politicians go from the state level to the national level, they really struggle with communicating – you can see that with DeSantis,” Schickler said. “To some extent, this is a dry run for Newsom.”

(Reporting by Joseph Ax; Additional reporting by James Oliphant, Tim Reid and Jarrett Renshaw; Editing by Colleen Jenkins and Cynthia Osterman)

By Andy Sullivan and David Morgan

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Lawmakers return to the U.S. Congress on Saturday with no clear path to resolving a squabble that appears likely to close wide swaths of the federal government, from national parks to financial regulation, in less than 18 hours.

Infighting among Republicans who control the House of Representatives has pushed the United States to the brink of its fourth partial shutdown in a decade, as the chamber has been unable to pass legislation that would keep the government open beyond the Oct. 1 start of the fiscal year.

On the other side of the Capitol, the Democratic-controlled Senate is due to advance a stopgap funding bill, but a final vote might not come for days.

Hundreds of thousands of federal employees will lack the funding to do their jobs if the two chambers do not send a spending bill for Democratic President Joe Biden to sign into law by 12:01 a.m. (0401 GMT) on Sunday.

Federal agencies have already drawn up detailed plans that spell out what services must continue, like airport screening and border patrols, and what must shut down, like scientific research and nutrition aid to 7 million poor mothers.

Most of the government’s 4 million-plus employees would not get paid, whether they were working or not.

In Atlanta, festivities for former president Jimmy Carter’s 99th birthday were moved up from Sunday to Saturday to avoid disruption, according to local media.

The standoff comes just months after Congress brought the federal government to the brink of defaulting on its $31.4 trillion debt. The drama has raised worries on Wall Street, where the Moody’s ratings agency has warned it could damage U.S. creditworthiness.

Congress typically passes stopgap spending bills to buy more time to negotiate the detailed legislation that sets funding for federal programs.

This year, a group of Republicans has blocked action in the House as they have pressed to tighten immigration and cut spending below levels agreed to in the debt-ceiling standoff last spring.

On Friday, 21 Republicans joined with Democrats to defeat legislation that reflected those demands, saying the chamber should focus instead on passing detailed spending bills for the full fiscal year, even if it leads to a shutdown in the near term.

That angered other Republicans, who said they had blown an opportunity to advance conservative policies.

“There’s a lot of frustration growing with the 21 individuals who chose to vote ‘no’ on what was a very good plan,” Republican Representative Nicole Malliotakis of New York said on Friday.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said the chamber might try to rely on Democrats to help pass a stopgap bill that would continue funding at current levels, even though that could prompt a challenge to his leadership from hardliners. He did not provide further details.

The Senate is due to hold a procedural vote at 1:00 p.m. (1700 GMT) to extend government funding through Nov. 17. It enjoys wide support from Republicans and Democrats, but the chamber’s numerous hurdles mean that a vote on final passage could be delayed until Tuesday.

Even if that passes, the two chambers would have to resolve their differences before sending any bill to Biden’s desk. That could pose another hurdle, as McCarthy said he opposed $6 billion in Ukraine aid included in the Senate bill.

“We continue to try to find a way out of this,” he said on Friday.

(Reporting by Andy Sullivan and David Morgan; Editing by Sonali Paul)