Daley ‘very optimistic’ on no shutdown

White House chief of staff Bill Daley said Sunday he is “very
optimistic” that there won’t be a government shutdown when current
funding runs out on March 18.

Daley has been participating in
budget negotiations with Republican and Democratic leaders in Congress,
and he downplayed the gap between the parties.

{mosads}“We’re not that far apart,” Daley said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
Based on each side’s proposal, Democrats and Republicans are roughly $50
billion apart on spending for the final seven months of fiscal 2011.

“There’s total agreement that no one wants a shutdown of this government,” Daley said.

Daley, who took his post in January, also implicitly criticized the
Democratic congressional majority in the last Congress for not passing a
budget for 2011. Daley said it was “kind of ridiculous” that a budget
was not in place nearly halfway through the fiscal year. Democrats did
not pass a budget plan or any individual appropriations bills last year.

Addressing the broader economy, the chief of staff said the
administration was considering tapping the strategic petroleum reserve
in response to rising oil prices. “We’re trying to look at all the
possible actions out there,” Daley said.