Obama, McConnell strike hopeful tone on budget, Zika
WASHINGTON — Striking a conciliatory tone after an Oval Office sitdown, President Barack Obama and the top Senate Republican declared themselves hopeful Monday that an agreement can be reached to keep the government running and to provide money to take care of the worsening Zika crisis.
“I was encouraged by some of the constructive work that’s being done right now,” Obama said after his meeting with the top four congressional leaders, two from each party.
Long-sought provisions to provide money to deal with Zika look likely to be added to a must-pass spending bill to fund the government through Dec. 9.
Entering the Capitol after the meeting, Senate Majority Leader McConnell told reporters that the group “talked about wrapping up the funding issue and I think we’re all in a very good place to do that on a bipartisan basis pretty quickly.”