Zika Funding Vote Fails Yet Again

After returning from a seven-week recess, the Senate was gridlocked once again Tuesday as attempts were made to get a bill passed to fight the spread of the Zika virus. Democrats blocked taking up bills from the GOP to pay for a public-health response to the virus. That and an agreement to fund the Pentagon next year were not reached, meaning the government could shut down on Sept. 30 if there isn’t a resolution. Democrats blocked the Zika bill because they say it included a provision to prevent funding for Planned Parenthood and that it no longer included a provision to ban Confederate flags from veterans’ cemeteries.