A shutdown must be avoided

In a familiar but always worrisome drama, the federal government faces a partial shutdown next week.

There is no good reason for shutdowns. They do nothing for the people or their government. A failure by Congress and the White House to agree quickly on a plan to temporarily keep that government going would be a lose-lose.

Unfortunately, such stopgap measures have become a chronic habit in the appropriations process. They are better than nothing in the short term, but no way to do business in the long term. As the dynamics now stand, the minority party can threaten to hold up an emergency extension in exchange for concessions as this Oct. 1 deadline nears.

This time the Democrats are the “out” party pushing for leverage. They want to force an extension of Affordable Care Act tax credits