Congressional Republicans showed no signs on Wednesday of having a clear plan for averting a U.S. government shutdown in three weeks over funding for Planned Parenthood, though senior party leaders have made clear they want to avoid that scenario.
As has happened before, a shutdown on Oct. 1 would likely rattle financial markets. But Republicans had little to say about this in their remarks about the women's health group and conservatives' demands that its federal funding be cut off.
After an hour-long, closed-door meeting of fellow party members, House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner said there were "no decisions at this point" on the content of a stopgap funding bill for the federal fiscal year beginning Oct. 1.