Congress Ends Another Day Without a Budget
GENE RANDALL, CNN ANCHOR: Here in Washington, members of Congress, who'd rather be out campaigning were instead working on the budget today in a battle with the president. CNN's Kelly Wallace reports from the White House -- Kelly.</s>KELLY WALLACE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Gene. Ten days before election day, lawmakers were spending some time in Washington instead of stumping for votes. The reason: two spending bills which are required to keep the government funded still have not been resolved. There is also gridlock over a end of year tax cut package, and so that is why we saw lawmakers on the House and Senate floors passing another 24-hour emergency measure to keep the government running and to prevent a government shut-down. The president has said he will only sign these stopgap measures one day at a time and that has some Republicans lawmakers quite frustrated.</s>SEN. ARLEN SPECTER (R), PENNSYLVANIA: The reality is that we are being intimidated by the president, the Congress is, and we are in fact being humiliated by what the president is doing. And there needs to be some semblance of goodwill and commity between the Congress and the president. And it does not exist and hasn't existed.</s>WALLACE: Now Republicans argue that the entire Congress does not need to be in session when only handful of lawmakers actually do the negotiations with the White House. Further, Republicans accuse the president of keeping lawmakers in session to force an election eve confrontation to benefit Democratic congressional candidates. Well, Mr. Clinton came into the briefing room in an unusual Saturday afternoon appearance in the briefing room to say he is not trying harass lawmakers. He is not trying force a confrontation. He says he's just trying to get lawmakers to finish their work.</s>WILLIAM J. CLINTON, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I am not trying to provoke a confrontation here. But these are the -- I will say again, the facts are clear. These are the only two bills on which we have not had a bipartisan negotiation. All we're asking for is to do these bills the way we did the others.</s>WALLACE: Now Mr. Clinton has called for negotiations to be held Sunday between the White House and Congressional Republicans over that tax cut package, but Republicans are not too optimistic that will happen. The only thing we know for sure -- both the House and the Senate will be in session on Sunday to pass another continuing resolution to keep the government running. Kelly Wallace, CNN, reporting live at the White House.