Norma Torres: “It looks like Congress has avoided another government shutdown for now. We will probably pass another short-term…”

“It looks like Congress has avoided another government shutdown for now. We will probably pass another short-term spending bill or two before this latest stopgap bill runs out, threatening to bring us to the brink once again. This is no way to govern. As a former mayor and State legislator, I know that our States and cities need to be able to plan ahead. They can't do that if Federal funding is up in the air and subject to the latest political tug of war. If we expect 50 States to pass a budget every year, there is no reason Congress can't do the same. It is time for Congress and the White House to stop playing games and to do the job that we were sent to Washington to do. ____________________”