Late this evening, Speaker John Boehner decided to make a final move: he will push Senate Democrats to join House Republicans in a conference committee to hash out their differences over the government-funding bill.
The House Rules Committee will be meeting shortly to consider a resolution to appoint conferees to such a bicameral panel, putting the ball in motion. Republicans believe the move will force Senate Democrats to finally negotiate after staying pat throughout the entire process.
A senior GOP aide says the House is will not pair the effort with any kind of one-week stopgap funding bill to provide a bridge while the two parties find an agreement, meaning it’s all but certain the government will shut down, at least temporarily.
The specific vote this evening will be a rule to allow the majority leader to request a conference, a second aide says.