With forced cuts due to sequestration possibly imminent, government agencies and the military are forcing the issue by deliberately broadcasting the dire consequences should Congress fail to act. The Navy says budget uncertainty means aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln will not be overhauled or refueled and that this threatens readiness.
Translation: Act now Congress or face the wrath of the military and its supporters.
My wife Sue works for the government and we are familiar with the maneuvering that goes on the month before a budget deadline. Congress always manages to find a solution at the final moment, after cynical Congressional gasbags on both sides of the aisle have exploited the drama and used it as a way to posture and raise money. This of course is a piss poor way to run a county but we are rather clearly governed by self-seeking mediocrities with no apparent interest in the populace at large. Hence we have a continual budget train wreck.