Happy New Year and welcome to 2018. We find ourselves in a familiar position as Congress has until January 19th to pass a government - funding bill. CHIP and the extenders remain in limbo, and Republicans and Democrats are still, at least publicly, at an impasse over spending, immigration, and health care, among other issues. It’s good to be back, isn’t it?

On Wednesday, Congressional leadership is expected to meet to discuss a path forward on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. The House is not in session until next Monday, leaving little time to deliberate over a spending bill expected to touch several politically sensitive topics.