The Senate having passed only four of 12 FY 2008 appropriations bills and those four not even scheduled for conference, and the new fiscal year starting next Monday, Oct. 1, House passage of a continuing resolution to keep the government operating through Nov. 16 at FY 2007 spending levels -- for the most part (see below) -- was a foregone conclusion. It hardly qualifies as news. The http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2007/roll911.xml" target="_blank">404-14 House vote on the continuing resolution this afternoon appears to put the budget debate on hold for six weeks. The Senate must vote on the CR this week as well, but that vote has not yet been scheduled. At first blush, you might think there's no reason to mistake the pause for the panic button. But for those whose benefits erode at the rate of inflation and others who become eligible for assistance that goes unfunded under FY 2007 formulas, no budget news is bad news. ------- The CR includes some expenditures over and above FY 2007 levels:

• $5.2 billion in emergency spending for mine-resistant ambush-protected vehicles (MRAPs), used to shield soldiers from roadside bombs in Iraq
• $9.4 billion for the war accounts over the period covered by the measure
• short-term extensions of funding that falls outside the appropriations process such as:

• the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP)
• the Federal Aviation Administration
• a program that aids workers affected by trade policies