OVERNIGHT MONEY: Negotiating long-distance

On Wednesday, House GOP aides will continue to craft a short-term spending measure that will be needed once current funding for the government expires on March 4. The short-term continuing resolution will almost certainly be needed, as the Senate will likely be unable to process the longer-term spending measure the House has passed before that deadline.

The House stop-gap bill, which would last for two or three weeks, is on track to be unveiled at the end of the week, aides said. For their part, Senate Democrats are pushing a 30-day bill that would keep spending at current levels.

As of yet, there has been no meaningful contact between the House and the Senate, either on the lawmaker or staff level, on the short-term funding measure. 

In the meantime, staffers for House leadership and the appropriations panel are currently trying to gauge what types of cuts will have to be in the legislation to satisfy the conservative Republican Study Committee and GOP freshmen. Republican leaders are also trying to balance the desire to cut with the risk of slashing too much from popular programs. 

If the cuts are seen as too controversial, Republicans could be blamed if the Democratic-controlled Senate refuses to enact them and a shutdown ensues.

Congressional staffers are also weighing whether to put “poison pills” in the bill, such as provisions defunding President Obama’s healthcare reform, according to an aide familiar with the talks. One aide said that giving up the attack on healthcare now could haunt negotiators who want to push for defunding later. 

What Else to Watch For:

Hitting the Field: Lawmakers from both chambers will head to Los Angeles for a Wednesday hearing that will likely hit on national, state and local transportation issues.

Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), the chairwoman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, and Rep. John Mica (R-Fla.), the chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, are expected to hear from Antonio Villaraigosa, the mayor of Los Angeles, and other private and public officials. 

The hearing comes as Congress is getting started on the next long-term transportation measure, which Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said recently he’d like to see passed by the time lawmakers leave for their August recess. 

Patching the Net: The Urban Institute will be hosting a panel discussion on how the nation’s economic safety net could be retooled before the next economic crisis. Slated to speak are officials from the institute, as well as researchers from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities and Mathematica Policy Research.

How’d the Banks Do?: Sheila Bair, the chairwoman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, is scheduled to discuss bank earnings for the 2010 fourth quarter and the year as a whole on Wednesday morning. 

Gauging the Market: The Mortgage Bankers Association will release weekly data on mortgage applications Wednesday, giving a fresh sense of how the housing market is recovering. 

Other Economic Indicators:

— The Bureau of Economic Analysis is set to drop 2009 GDP figures by metropolitan area. 

— The Labor Department is scheduled to release January mass layoff figures.

— The American Petroleum Institute is expected to circulate weekly statistics on gasoline production and inventories.

— The National Association of Realtors is slated to release existing-home sales for January. 

Breaking Tuesday:

Three Decades and Counting: The Obama administration assured reporters on Tuesday that it had a plan if a government shutdown were to occur – even as Jay Carney, the White House press secretary, also stressed that he was optimistic such a situation would be avoided.

Kenneth Baer, a spokesman for the Office of Management and Budget, said in a statement that all agencies have been required to have a contingency plan in place since 1980, and that those blueprints are regularly updated. 

A Market Roiled: With oil prices shooting up, the Dow Jones Industrial Average had its biggest drop since November on Tuesday. The Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index, meanwhile, had its worst day since August. The drops happened as Muammar el-Qaddafi, the Libyan leader, vowed to fight to keep control of his country. 

Can You Say Swing State?: The Associated Press reports that, since his State of the Union address last month, President Obama has jetted away from Washington at least once a week, usually to states that could play a big role in next year’s presidential election. The president stopped in Cleveland on Tuesday where he met with small business owners and discussed infrastructure investment. 

What You Might Have Missed:

On the Money’s Tuesday:

— Washington’s the big gainer when it comes to housing prices. 

— GAO finds that Treasury has less time to maneuver these days once the debt ceiling is breached. 

— The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and others receive some positive reviews on last year’s credit card legislation. 

— Democrats and Republicans in the Senate want the insurance slots filled on the Financial Stability Oversight Council. 

— Ben Bernanke has a couple more dates on Capitol Hill next week. 

— Max Baucus wants more trade with Brazil.

— Blacks and Hispanics feel better about the economy’s future than whites. 

— The Conference Board: Consumer confidence is on the rise; Gallup: Not so much. 

Feedback always welcomed at bbecker@digital-staging.thehill.com.