The House has invoked martial law for the second time this month, allowing them to vote on a stopgap spending bill this morning and keeping our barely functioning government from grinding to a halt for at least another few months. Progress!

While Boehner is almost sure to stave off a government shutdown before the September 30 deadline, the looming debt ceiling—which we’re estimated to reach sometime in mid-December—presents a much larger problem. But earlier this morning, Boehner told reporters that he’s not ruling out a vote to raise the country’s borrowing limit. And considering Boehner’s replacement will likely be far more compliant to the party’s whims, this could be the best chance we’ve got.

Total cost of the government shutdown? About $24 billion.

House stenographer and conservative martyr Dianne Reidy explained her Wednesday night outburst in an email to Fox News’ Chad Pergram: “For the past 2 and 1/2 weeks, the Holy Spirit has been waking me up in the middle of the night and preparing me (through my reluctance and doubt) to deliver a message in the House Chamber.
 That is what I did last night.”

In his post-budget deal speech this morning, President Obama outlined the necessity of an effective federal government and thanked the Democrats and Republicans who worked together to end the shutdown while criticizing, without specifically naming, the conservatives responsible for the closure.

Yesterday, a previously mild-mannered House stenographer unexpectedly seized the Speaker's microphone and began ranting about God and Freemasons as Republicans and Democrats were voting on a deal to end the shutdown.

As the House finished their vote to reopen the federal government and raise the debt ceiling, a House stenographer decided it was a good time to let everyone know her feelings about God, Congress, and the Freemasons.

Senator Harry Reid has announced a plan that may reopen the government and avoid national default. People in Antarctica will be very happy to hear it.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell are reportedly in the final stages of working out a deal to reopen the government and avoid a national default. Great news. Now the question is if said deal will be able to get through the goddamn mess that is the House of Representatives.

Blaming “political brinkmanship” for a potential debt default later this week, ratings agency Fitch just put the United States’ ‘AAA’ credit rating under review for a downgrade.

No aspect of the U.S. government shutdown has garnered more public attention or drawn more outrage than the closing of national monuments. State governments and private donors have kicked in funds to keep monuments open. Here is a more nuanced perspective: fuck the fucking national monuments.

How do the bison feel about the government shutdown? Pretty itchy, it seems. (Via @radleybalko.)

Hoping to preempt a tentative Senate deal unpopular with many of its members, House Republicans presented a new plan this morning to reopen the government through Jan. 15 and raise the debt limit to Feb. 7. UPDATE 11:55 a.m.: House Republicans have already abandoned the plan because there weren't enough votes to support it.

With the deadline to raise the debt ceiling just three days away and negotiations between members of Congress at a stalemate, international financial leaders at the World Bank and International Monetary Fund this weekend warned about the “massive disruption” a continued shutdown and debt default would have on the world economy.

Why don't the Democrats in Congress just force a vote on the spending bill already passed by the Senate? Because less than two hours before the government shutdown, House Republicans enacted a special rule that prevents anyone but the majority leader from introducing a bill to fund the government.

After House Republicans left the White House Saturday morning distraught by the President's unwillingness to negotiate, the Senate has once again taken the lead in trying to end the government shutdown that is now finishing its second week. A breakthrough deal however, with the looming debt limit deadline on Thursday, remains far off.

All that progress being reported last night on a possible deal to increase the debt limit and maybe reopen the government? It's gone. House Republicans tell CNN that the President "rejected our deal" after a late-night session with the White House.

After Air Canada lost her dog, one Ohio woman reached out to a news station in Sacramento to share her story.

Here's one reason House Republicans are pushing for a short-term debt increase before next week's deadline: The GOP's popularity is at an all-time low while President Obama's is rising, according to a new NBC/Wall Street Journal poll.