A partial government shutdown is days away in the US but congressional leaders offered some hope that a deal could be reached before the March 1 deadline. Friday represents the first of two deadlines Congress faces to keep parts of the government open. The second is March 8, by which time they must reach a deal to fund eight other federal agencies. “We believe we can get to an agreement on these issues and prevent a government shutdown and that’s our first responsibility,” Mr Johnson said. More than 800,000 federal employees were furloughed during the 2013 shutdown, as explained by the Office of Management and Budget.
