Both chambers are scheduled to be in recess for part of next week, to mark Veteran's Day.
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In January, when the Senate refused to confirm Mr. Obama's new picks for the NLRB, he proclaimed the Senate to be in "recess" and appointed the members anyway, making a mockery of that chamber's advice-and-consent role.
It also ruled that a vacancy must come into being during a recess in order to be valid.
The case is secured in a recess above the twin drinks holders in the center console and can be easily slipped into a pocket or bag.
Both sides believe the next few weeks - when members of Congress are in their homes states during Easter recess - could be crucial to the gun control debate, the BBC's David Willis reports from Washington.
Senate Republicans employed an unconventional maneuver, calling the Senate into a series of pro-forma sessions (in which no business could be transacted) to prevent an actual recess from occurring.
Bolton to become the next U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations - and urging a recess appointment be made to ensure Mr. Bolton is in place before the UN tries in September to impose international taxes on American citizens.
CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Orgs oppose 'globotaxes,' give Bolton recess appt
The flood-relief supplemental appropriations bill, bogged down all week, appears to be a large part of the problem and may not be cleared until after the recess, holding up billions of dollars in relief and infuriating representatives of the hard-hit areas.
To circumvent the Senate's constitutional role to advise and consent on nominations, President Obama has made so-called recess appointments when the Senate wasn't in recess appointments that two federal appellate courts agreed would be unconstitutional.
Later that year, in August, the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia prompted Parliament to be reconvened during the summer recess.
Both pieces of legislation could be up for a full vote by the House and Senate before Congress breaks for recess in August.
The Senate group met behind closed doors in the Capitol on Wednesday, hoping to forge legislation that could be introduced after the August recess.
The job was done a week ahead of time, in good measure so the exhausted legislators could be reunited with their families for a long Easter recess.
The Speaker's Office said he would be available for other duties but advised that the number of duties in parliament's first week back after recess was in any case limited.
But hopes for a quick and early resolution on the impasse appeared dismal -- the House, in a vote along party lines, will recess from Friday night until Wednesday, although the members could be called back for a budget vote.
CNN: Budget impasse continues amid mix of pessimism and hope
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