As the sun rose in Washington, D.C. on a second day of a government shutdown, the White House announced that President Obama would cancel stops in Malaysia and the Philippines, shortening a trip to Asia scheduled for next week, as the political fallout continues over a government shutdown.
Down the street at the U.S. Capitol, the bipartisan finger pointing continues unabated, as both sides blame the other for the budget impasse.
"To say that I am outraged, is an understatement," said an aggravated Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL), who joined the verbal volleys on the Senate floor from both parties to express his displeasure with the current standoff in Congress.
Earlier in the day, I had been interviewing Nelson just outside the Senate chamber, and as I asked him how long he thought the shutdown would last, he repeated that question as Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) walked by.
"Damned if I know," McCain said without missing a beat.
And at this point, that's where members of both parties would find some common ground - they genuinely have no idea how long this shutdown might last.
In terms of Congressional action, there is work going on in the House and Senate - but none of it right now seems like it will lead to a deal.
On Tuesday night, Democrats in the House successfully blocked three GOP mini-funding bills designed to fully open the Veterans Administration, the National Park Service and the Washington, D.C. government.
"This is a trick," said Rep. Jose Serrano (D-NY), as Democrats withheld their support on a bill that needed a two-thirds majority to win approval.
Republicans then put the issues right back on the schedule for Wednesday, except this time the bills will only need a majority vote for approval.
But while that might sound like progress, there really aren't substantive discussions going on right now on finding a solution to this budget impasse.
As for GOP lawmakers, there is still internal dissension over the best way forward and the best tactics to use, and that was obvious as we interviewed lawmakers from both the House and Senate.
"We don't want a shutdown," said Rep. Steve Chabot (R-OH) as he emerged from a meeting of House Republicans on Tuesday afternoon.
"The one piece we don't agree with is the funding of Obamacare," Chabot said.
"At the end of the day, this is not where we should pick a fight," said Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-GA). "The debt ceiling is a different issue."
The mentions of the debt ceiling were much more prevalent on Tuesday, making many in the halls of the Capitol think that this shutdown battle could limp along for the next week or so, and get swept up in the debate on the debt limit.
"Shutdown fight could become debt limit fight," read the morning headline in Wednesday's Washington Post.
"Government in limbo as Capitol Hill stare-down shows no sign of ending," reported the Associated Press.
As for finding some kind of deal, Democrats are still pressing for Republicans to just fund the government for six weeks, and then use that time to work out deals on the budget and debt limit.
"Mr. Speaker, get those votes because this shutdown, while it might be a joy to all of you who are opposed to government, is a luxury the American people cannot afford," said House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi.
Republicans though want negotiators to work something out.
"Right now the country is going broke," said Rep. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK). "We've got to sit down and negotiate, just like we're supposed to."
Last week, I didn't think we would have a shutdown. Now that it's happened, I'm not sure it gets fixed very fast.
Stay tuned.
