Preparing For a Government Shutdown

House Majority Leader John Boehner and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid sat behind closed doors yesterday, trying to come to compromise over the budget, but leaders in both parties seemed to be bracing for a real government shutdown by the end of the week. President Obama urged both Democrats and Republicans to put aside petty differences and come to a compromise. If they don’t, every federal agency will have to come up with a contingency plan, especially the Office of Management and Budget, and the Office of Personnel Management.   James Miller III, was director for the OMB between 1985 and 1988, and worked through two government shutdowns. He shares how he prepared for those brief shutdowns. He is also the author of “Fix the U.S. Budget!: Urgings of an ‘Abominable No-Man.” Todd Zwillich, The Takeaway’s Washington correspondent, has the latest on how negotiations are going, and reactions from Washington.