Both sides expressed more optimism that a resolution could be reached, but time is short. One sign that a deal may be near is that the House waived its three-day rule for legislation, allowing a deal – or a short stopgap while a deal is being written – to move expeditiously through Congress without a 72-hour delay. This doesn’t mean a deal is going to happen, but it’s the clearest sign that Republicans may actually want one, mindful of what might happen to their favorability in a government shutdown.

No real movement thus far today on talks to avoid a government shutdown, but there is one piece of good news: the water works are functioning again.

Just because Democratic and Republican leaders are negotiating again on a continuing resolution to keep the government running for the rest of the year doesn’t mean the rank and file of either party will accept it. This is especially true on the Republican side. Sure, yesterday’s Tea Party rally was a dud, but half of the folks out there were lawmakers. And an unspecified number of them are extremely disinterested in compromise of any kind.

There was a disturbing report that the Obama Administration might allow policy riders into the continuing resolution for the 2011 budget that would attack clean water and clean air regulations from the EPA. The White House now says that’s not the case.

John Boehner is in a tight spot. Having been around in the 1990s, he must have a sense that affirmatively shutting down the government carries a serious risk, especially because that’s not the end of the story. Eventually, there would be a resolution, and it won’t carry everything the Tea Party wants, and the reaction will clearly be betrayal. Not to mention that he has Eric Cantor looking over his shoulder, dusting off the nameplate that would go over his out in front of the Speaker’s office should Boehner lose the confidence of his caucus. Cantor has been stepping out of late, ruling out any short-term stopgap even while Boehner never made such a claim.