Obama Signs Stopgap Bill, Averts Shutdown

Yet another government shutdown has been averted. President Obama yesterday signed the continuing resolution to keep the government funded until Sept. 30, the last day of the fiscal year, The Hill reports. The bill includes sequester-related spending cuts, but White House press secretary Jay Carney said that shouldn't be taken as a sign that Obama endorses the cuts. "There is no question that we believe we should not have come to this point where sequester would be imposed," he said. "There's no question that we believe regular folks out there are being unnecessarily harmed by imposition of the sequester." He added that Obama is still hoping for a grand bargain on the budget. (More stopgap stories.)