It all means Congress must reach another deal to prevent a government shutdown by Jan. 19. Lawmakers also likely have to solve the issue of whether to protect young immigrants losing the protection of an Obama-era program shielding them from deportation beginning in March.

Democrats may not agree to keep the government funded without a deal for the “Dreamers.”

“Jan. 19 is not going to be a fun day,” said House Freedom Caucus Chairman Mark Meadows (R-N.C.).

Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), the No. 2 Senate Republican, compared the upcoming schedule to “Groundhog Day.”

The Senate is eyeing a vote on an agreement linking a fix for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and border security.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has promised to bring a potential bill up for a vote in January if senators can finish legislation by then.

But divisions remain on key issues, including if those covered by DACA should get citizenship, how many individuals would be covered and what security provisions would be part of a package.

“Everybody’s going to have to hold their nose a bit and take a little bit of a loss in order to solve the problem. That’s the balance that we have to get to. Are we there yet? No. But I think we will get there,” said Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.).

http://thehill.com/homenews/house/36...haotic-january