The AP reports that “Republican leader Mitch McConnell announced he will not vote to block legislation aimed at preventing a partial government shutdown, even though Democrats intend to rewrite it to restore funds needed to keep the nation’s 3-year-old health care law in existence.”

Meanwhile, Patriot Post columnist Arnold Ahlert opines: “Don’t get me wrong. I think Ted Cruz (R-TX) is one of the few bright lights in the GOP, but I suspect the Harvard-trained lawyer could be far more effective pursuing the fight against this monstrosity in court, where he would know exactly who opposes him and why. In the Senate, he is up to his neck in back-stabbing ‘colleagues’ who want nothing more than to avoid any blame for anything related to this bill.”