let's go to kelly o'donnell. kelly, what are you seeing where you are right now? >> that's right, tamron. we've just been given an all clear sign, so there's a message going out through the in-house tv and message system on the u.s. capitol grounds that there is an all clear. the incident has been concluded. so normal operations can resume. neither the house nor the senate floors are back up and running yet, but this has been a very tense time over the last -- i'm not even sure how long the time has elapsed here. we have been in this lockdown mode. that's become a word americans are all too familiar with of what that means. we have several united states senators who are saying that they heard three to five popping sounds. they were earwitnesses to this. we've seen the evacuation of at least one individual who appeared to me to be wearing a u.s. capitol police uniform. we will soon hopefully get some greater information about what the circumstances were. the authorities we normally are interacting with when an unusual situation takes place are obviously in the midd

let me bring in kelly o'donnell, who's on the hill for us. kelly, what can you tell us? again, this is some of the video coming in right now. these are live pictures. kelly, are you there? >> i am, tamron. this is limited information. we have been given a shelter in place order here on capitol hill. we're told we must stay in our offices under lockdown. there's a report of shots fired on the west front of the capitol. i cannot independently confirm whether that is a report that is true or if sounds were heard. we're being told the u.s. capitol police are clearing the area. that is what we know at this point. i can tell you that the senate floor has been operating. offices have been operating. we're hearing warnings signs here to tell us to all shelter for place. we do have colleagues who are on the outside who are trying to assess what's happening, but this is a highly unusual, very concerning circumstance of a report of shots fired outside the u.s. capitol at a time when lawmakers are here. we have seen protests but not

we begin with capitol hill correspondent kelly o'donnell. the hearing is in a break but

kelly o'donnell covers capitol hill for us. kelly, what's going on there? >> reporter: well, a breakthrough, brian. house speaker john boehner saying we fought the good fight, we just didn't win. boehner urged fellow republicans to support this compromise that we expect senators to pass later today. boehner says the government could reopen tomorrow. >> kelly o'donnell on the hill. let's check this with chuck todd, who covers the white house. what does this mean for the people who work in that building behind you? >> reporter: right now they're saying as little as possible. they don't want to somehow create some sort of problem or stumbling block here in the last minute. that's why you've not seen or really heard from the president today and not heard them say much other than praising that a bipartisan deal is finally going to happen. they're just waiting for it to get on their desk. at the end of the day, you still don't know what happens when the house gets the bill. >> all right. chuck todd, kelly o'donnell. it is clear we're probably in for a long night

joining me now kelly o'donnell and mark halperin, nbc analyst and "time" editor-at-large. first to you, talk about the winners and losers, the people, thousands and thousands without paychecks, benefits, people getting backlogged by the veterans administration, already backlogged, fha mortgages. lets talk about the politics, raw politics. the president seems to be getting the platform to put his word out there saying this is a republican shutdown that did not need to happen. >> andrea, i took pretty careful notes. the president didn't say anything that would surprise me or anyone listening to his message and jay carney and other people giving the administration's measure. they are not happy, because of the human cost you referred to. the politics aren't great for the president. they are going to keep playing this hand, i suspect, until the end of this. not only do they think it's the winning hand but there's no other hand for the president to say. that contrasts, of course, with speaker boehner and other republicans who scramble and continue to scramble and try to find a m

largely an exercise in damage control, nbc's kelly o'donnell covering for us. >> reporter: it's congress's job to fix this mistake. and passing a law would do that. but nothing was simple today. with that private group stepping in, that took the political pressure off. when the government reopens, it will be reimbursed when the pentagon has the money. and because that charity acted, it essentially gave the senate a chance to do nothing to solve the problem. >> this is an unnecessary shutdown. how dare we not provide these grieving families with the necessary support in their time of need. >> reporter: today every house democrat and every house republican voted for the benefits. but what seemed like a quick washington solution spiralled into politics. even the senate chaplain weighed in. >> it's time for our lawmakers to say enough is enough. >> reporter: were you trying to jolt lawmakers with your prayer? >> i was trying to express what some of them have expressed and felt, that at some point you have to draw the line. at some point you have to say enough is enough. >> reporter: the shutdo

capitol hill correspondent kelly o'donnell has more. >> you deserve better. i apologize. i'm accountable to you for fixing these problems, and i'm committed to earning your confidence back by fixing the site. hold me accountable for the decackle. i'm responsible. >> reporter: sebelius admitted they failed to do enough testing before the october 1st launch. >> do you believe that two weeks was enough time to complete testing of the entire system? >> clearly not. >> reporter: beyond website issues, frustration and confusion over a promise made by the president. >> the president kept saying if you like your health care plan, you can keep it. is he keeping his promise? >> yes, he is. >> reporter: lawmakers from both parties complained that constituents without employer-provided insurance say their policies are being cancelled or premium prices hiked, in part because the health care law requires more services like preventive care be covered. >> they don't offer the minimum essential benefits, is that correct? >> that is correct. >> reporter: sebelius responded that only affect

>> kelly o'donnell on all the business of capitol hill tonight. kelly, thanks. >>> also on capitol hill, we have an update tonight on something that became kind of a sad symbol of the government shutdown. it's called the ohio clock. it has stood for almost two centuries outside the entrance to the u.s. senate. well, it stopped running, just stopped on october 9th. there was no one around to wind it because they'd been furloughed. today that changed. you see that man there today. it's running and keeping time. >>> president obama talked today about the mess we all witnessed unravel for the past two weeks. notably he talked today about the damage it has caused. >> nothing has done more damage to america's credibility in the world, our standing with other countries than the spectacle that we've seen these past several weeks. it's encouraged our enemies, it's emboldened our competitors, and it's depressed our friends who look to us for steady leadership. all of us need to stop focusing on the lobbyists and the bloggers and the talking heads on radio an

kelly o'donnell has more. >> you deserve better. i apologize. i am accountable to you for fixing these problems and i am committed to earning your confidence back by fixing the site. hold me accountable for the debacle. >> reporter: sebelius admitted to failing to do enough testing. >> do you believe it was enough time to complete testing. >> clearly not. >> reporter: frustration and confusion over a promise often made by the president. >> the president kept saying if you like your health care plan you can keep it. is he keeping his promise? >> yes he is. >> reporter: lawmakers complain that constituents without employer provided insurance say their insurance is being canceled or prices hiked. >> they don't offer the minimum essential benefits. is that correct? >> that is correct. >> reporter: sebelius responded that that only affects a small number of americans. >> consumers have a right to shop anywhere to compare plans. >> that was kelly o'donnell reporting. questions are mounting on whether the site is secure. at issue is your private inform

nbc's kelly o'donnell. kelly, good evening. >> reporter: good evening, brian. it is congress's job to fix this mistake but nothing was simple today. with the private group stepping in, that took the political pressure off. that group will pay the benefit and when the government reopens it will be reimbursed. because that charity acted it gave the senate a chance to do nothing to solve the problem. >> how dare we not provide grieving families with the necessary support in their time of need ? >> reporter: today, every house democrat and every house republican voted to guarantee military death benefits. but what seemed like a quick washington solution spiralled into politics. even the senate chaplain, a re tired admiral, weighed in. >> it is time for our lawmakers to say enough is enough. >> were you trying to jolt lawmakers with your prayers? >> well, i was trying to express what some of them have expressed and felt. that at some point you have to draw the line. at some point you have to say enough is enough. >> reporter: the shutdown, many complained, has polit

>> kelly o'donnell on capitol hill for us tonight. kelly, thanks. >>> as we said, this happened on day three of this federal government shutdown. when this day started there seemed to be no end of it in sight. our chief white house correspondent political director chuck todd is with us from the north lawn at the white house. chuck, not being flip here, but does an incident like this change anything in washington? we just saw the house agree at least on a standing ovation for the capitol police. >> reporter: brian, i wish i could tell you the answer is yes. after the sustained applause. after the moment of silence, within an hour, the house went back to doing what it's been doing. republicans versus democrats on how to fund the government. the house republicans have been doing little bills and they pass the bills, send them to the senate. brian, what i'm holding here -- my in-box is just filling up again. it's the same press releases we have been seeing since the shutdown. we are unfortunately back to the political normal. if there is o

here's nbc's kelly o'donnell. >> reporter: the unbearable wait finally ended today at the national zoo. [ cheers and applause ] >> reporter: this was re-opening day for a jewel of the national park system. >> welcome to yellowstone. >> reporter: but getting back to normal is more complicated for some house republicans. facing questions and constituents back home. south carolina's mark sanford was on local tv today. >> what i would say is i'd say in different ways both sides probably overplayed their hands. >> reporter: in rockford, illinois, republican adam kinslinger chose to visit a new cancer treatment center. >> we bought ourselves three months. from the bigger scale from the d.c. scale, three months to have grown-up conversations about the difficulties we face and ways to get it done. >> reporter: while all is quiet on capitol hill until the house returns tuesday, political analysts can already measure damage from the shutdown done to the gop. what is the biggest risk? >> the biggest problem is for moderate republicans and republicans in swing districts and democratic-leaning dist

it's where we begin tonight with kelly o'donnell on capitol hill. good evening. >> reporter: good evening, brian. today the obama administration provided the first details about how many people have been trying to sign up using the website. they say 700,000 people have registered and another 1.6 million calls from come into the call centers. but they're not saying how many people have actually bought insurance. meanwhile today a house committee grilled those company experts about what has gone so wrong. the top government contractors who built and run the flawed healthcare.gov website -- >> can you tell us when you'll have the issues repaired? >> reporter: -- ignored our questions today. >> did you feel you had an opportunity to explain that today? >> reporter: but did take an oath to answer congress truthfully. grilled for more than four hours. >> is that a system you're proud of? >> these problems need to be fixed fast. >> reporter: contractors responsible for different parts of the health care website and enrollment process repeatedly claimed the

kelly o'donnell has an update tonight on where the showdown stands. >> reporter: this lunchtime stroll became the president's message event of shutdown day four. >> how's it going, everybody? >> reporter: forced to cancel his four-country trip to asia. president obama and vice president biden visited a local sandwich shop. >> i'm happy to have negotiations with the republicans and speaker boehner on a whole range of issues. but we can't do it with a gun held to the head of the american people. >> reporter: a flash of anger today from house speaker john boehner who claims the white house is keeping score. >> we get the wall street journal out, it says we don't care how long this lasts because we're winning. this isn't some damn game. the american people don't want their government shut down, and neither do i. >> reporter: boehner referred to this quote from an unnamed white house official on the length of this standoff. we are winning. it doesn't really matter to us. winning became today's loaded word as the president reacted. >> there is no winning when families don't have certainty ab

. >> reporter: this is kelly o'donnell on capitol hill where there is outrage. >> i am ashamed, embarrassed, we all should be. >> reporter: as congress deals with the unexpected casualty of the government shutdown. >> i would hate to look those families in the eye and say well, yeah, this is all because democrats and republicans can't agree. >> reporter: outside the capitol, illinois democrat, tammy duckworth, the first disabled woman veteran elected to congress knows the hardship. do you feel it in a way that maybe your colleagues don't? >> yeah, i feel it in my gut, i know exactly what the families are going through. i know just what it is like to get that phone call from the department of the army casual assistance department, because my family got that call. >> reporter: they were allowed money for burial costs. "today" show that brought the issue to light put the attention of the majority leader harry reid. >> does not allow the death benefits for the families of the fallen, as told andrea mitchell of nbc. >> reporter: word spread in the house republican's morning meeting. the south ca

kelly o'donnell has spent yet another day covering it all. good evening, kelly. >> reporter: good evening, brian. confusion and parol sis are all i can say for sure right now. the house had planned to vote on a bill to reopen government and prevent that default, and then abruptly scrapped that after tea party conservatives told speaker boehner they would not go along. tonight gop aides say no decision on next steps and senators tell me they don't know how this ends. how did we go from this just last night -- >> i'm very optimistic. >> reporter: -- to this today -- >> and it is nothing more than a blatant attack on bipartisanship. >> reporter: hopes deteriorated quickly on a senate plan to reopen the government and prevent a default on the country's good credit when house republicans rejected bishop senate comp mice. mr. speaker can you guarantee to the american people congress will not go past the deadline and push us into default? >> listen, i have made clear for months and months that the idea of default is wrong. and we shouldn't get anywhe

washington standards, the anger and anxiousness are building tonight, as we begin here with nbc's kelly o'donnell on capitol hill. kelly, good evening. >> reporter: good evening, brian. late developments. sources are telling me this is the closest that congress has been to resolving this issue. senate leaders have reached a framework of a deal that would put the government back in business through january 15th and let the federal government borrow money for another four months. but this is a senate deal so far. they'll sleep on it tonight. more finishing touches tomorrow. so it is not a done deal yet. on day 14, caution tape and barricades did not keep out frustrated visitors at the national monuments. >> peanut butter and jelly sandwiches? >> reporter: while the president used the backdrop of a local food pantry to deliver a dire warning about what could happen if congress fails to let the federal government reopen and borrow more money by the thursday deadline. >> we stand a good chance of defaulting. and defaulting would have a potentially devastating effect on our economy. >> reporter: an une

we start with kelly o'donnell on capitol hill where frustration spilled in to the streets for a time today. >> reporter: sure did, lester. with the dire consequences days away, tonight the senate and republican top officials responsible for finding a solution had just one phone call and made no progress. senators are divide over how much federal spending should be permitted in a budget extension that would reopen the government and how long any new borrowing limits should last. today, this impasse brought out anger and emotion. voices from across the political divide brought their frustrations to washington's landmarks today, both liberal and con can servetive protests. the far larger turnout, tea party inspired demonstrators toppled and stacked barricades in front of the white house. today, barricades became a symbol of anger over closed monuments and were cut apart and carried from the closed world war ii memorial. >> all of these people are here because things are broken. the memorial is a flash point for conservatives. tea party stars sarah palin and ted cruz were there. >> our v

. >> reporter: this is kelly o'donnell on capitol hill, where outrage spread quickly. >> i'm ashamed, embarrassed. all of us should be. >> reporter: as congress works with an unexpected casualty of this government shutdown. >> i would hate to look the families in the eye and say yeah, well, this is all because democrats and republicans can't agree. >> reporter: outside the capitol, illinois democrat tammy duckworth, the first disabled veteran elected to congress knows the hardship. do you feel it in a way that maybe your colleagues don't? >> yeah, i feel it in my gut. i know exactly what the family members are going through. i know exactly what it is like to get the phone call from the army assistance department. >> reporter: the military benefits also include 12 months of housing allowance and up to $9,000 to cover burial costs. "the today show" report that brought this issue to light caught the attention of majority leader harry reid. >> does not allow for the death benefits to the families of the fallen. officials told andrea mitchell of nbc. >> reporter: word spread in the house r

kelly o'donnell on the hill for us. thanks. let's take this story out of washington where the talking is going on, where what we just saw is already hitting home across america, after all, and could get a lot worse for a lot of families if there is a shutdown overnight. nbc's kevin tibbles with us from downtown chicago tonight. good evening. >> reporter: brian, tonight as the hour approaches, thousands of americans who work in and out of government are bracing for the consequences of a shutdown. at chicago's federal building today, dozens of government workers gathered to protest a government shutdown. elizabeth came on her lunch hour. you're worried? >> oh, yeah. yeah. i'm the only one who's the breadwinner right now. >> reporter: she works for the epa, a mother and grandmother. her husband was recently laid off. she is frustrated, angry, and worried. >> congress needs to be turned over somebody's knee and spanked real hard, because they're acting like small children. >> reporter: as the business of government is poised to gri

it all covered this morning, the politics of it and the economic impact beginning with nbc's kelly o'donnell she is on capitol hill. kelly, how did it all go down? >> matt, what a night. congress will be back to work today to try to fix this mess but aids in both parties, sources high up, say right now they think this could go on for days, maybe even weeks. and that's because that prediction is because they're not dealing with money where they could just meet in the middle. they're fighting over differences about the future of the health care law. >> reporter: gridlock in the middle of the night. >> should the public be prepared for this to go on for days? >> let's hope not. >> reporter: no solution in site. john boehner left the capitol unable to strike a deal. >> the house made it's decision known quickly. we believe we should fund the government and there should be basic fairness for all americans under obamacare. >> reporter: senate democrats would not budge on obamacare. >> it is embarrassing that these people who are elected to represent the country are representing the tea party, the

. >> nbc news capitol hill correspondent kelly o'donnell joins us live. we know harry reid and john boehner apparently spoke by phone a short time ago. what can you tell us? >> reporter: senator harry reid did call and followed up with a letter and put into writing an offer that he's willing to make if house republicans will vote to reopen the government, reid says he would infact put together negotiators to work with house negotiators to talk about a larger set of fiscal issues. he has been saying this before and now tieing it to the reopening of the government. he has at other times said no negotiating or piecemeal approach to reopening parts of the government. so this is not a big new development but it is a point here that we're marking today where reid is reaching out to the house speaker and putting it in writing and saying, they want to talk. now the condition there was the government needs to reopen and that has already been something they have hashed out in the last day or two and the position from the house speaker and gop leadership is that the

. >> reporter: this is kelly o'donnell on capitol hill where there is outrage. >> i am ashamed, embarrassedwe all should be. >> reporter: as congress deals with the unexpected casualty of the government shutdown. >> i would hate to look those families in the eye and say well, yeah, this is all because democrats and republicans can't

and kelly o'donnell, thanks as always. after the break, the latest boehner-led republican meltdown isn't even fully realized, but president obama isn't wasting any time vowing to renew his push for comprehensive immigration reform as soon as this current crisis is over. we'll discuss the day after tomorrow and the agenda when former white house chief of staff john pe december that joins us next on "now." both maxwell and ted have hail damage to their cars. ted is trying to get a hold of his insurance agent. maxwell is not. he's on geico.com setting up an appointment with an adjuster. ted is now on hold with his insurance company. maxwell is not and just confirmed a 5:30 time for tuesday. ted, is still waiting. yes! maxwell is out and about... with ted's now ex-girlfriend. wheeeee! whoo! later ted! online claims appointments. just a click away on geico.com. with 0-calorie monk fruit in the raw. it's made with the natural, vine-ripened sweetness of fruit, so you can serve up deliciously sweet treats without all the sugar. ra

we start our coverage today with nbc's kelly o'donnell, who's on capitol hill. kelly, i know there was at least a little bit of a bipartisan lunch with senator rand paul. then you have two members of congress, one democrat, one a republican, coming out with some kind of idea they say is a bipartisan effort to end this but picking up little steam. >> one of the things that's been so difficult about this is you have these pockets of attempts at compromise, but it has not yet carried the day. in part, speaker boehner continues to say he will not allow a vote on the spending bill that does not include some changes to the health care law. and that has been the hard line that has really kept us in this position. at the same time, the house is continuing to vote on things. moments ago passing with some democratic votes a measure to pay the national guard and reserve. you know, we already saw military pay for those active duty signed into law. this piece-by-piece approach, they're continuing on the house side with a little bit of democratic support. senators from the rep

we get that part of this story from nbc's kelly o'donnell on the hill. kelly, good evening. >> reporter: good to see you again, brian. for many republicans they're now at that acceptance phase after a bruising defeat. many are admitting mistakes, assessing responsibility, and one of the most divisible figures started the day trying to mend some wounds. >> he greeted visitors and veterans outside the reopened capitol. lawmakers headed out of town after the late-night vote, and house speaker john boehner turned up on twitter, his photo snapped at an airport gate today. the shutdown leaves new political baggage for the republican party to carry. >> i think a lot of folks that thought this might be a productive strategy have learned that it's really not. >> reporter: the conservative conflict is over the flawed strategy of making the budget fight about obamacare. today the most senior represent can senator utah's orren hatch blamed outside groups for stalking imperial battles. >> they think they can control the republican party, some of which have been good t

kelly o'donnell has an update tonight on where the showdown stands. >> reporter: this lunchtime stroll became the president's message event of shutdown day four. >> how's it going, everybody? >> reporter: forced to cancel his four-country trip to asia. president obama and vice president biden visited a local sandwich shop. >> i'm happy to have negotiations with the republicans and speaker boehner on a whole range of issues. but we can't do it with a gun held to the head of the american people. >> reporter: a flash of anger today

let's go now to nbc's capitol hill correspondent kelly o'donnell. kelly, what is the latest? this has been an afternoon of confusion. the backdrop, a heated political debate in america and all of a sudden security takes the front stage for a few hours. what is the latest? >> it has been quite a day here, ed, as you can imagine. there had been so much tension in the air of purely the political kind, and then so abruptly it turned into this crisis where people did not know the extent of this violent act. we saw police activity, we heard police activity, and right now i can tell you that there is a calm returning. the work of the business of congress is returning, but there are many questions that need to be answered and investigators from the u.s. capitol police, the secret service, national park service, and the washington, d.c. metro police department are all working on that and we expect in about an hour or so to get another briefing, an update on information. but the pictures have been extraordinary. this is a place that welcomes the public in. so on a daily basis i come to

kelly o'donnell has that story. >> reporter: the top government contractors who built and run the flawedhercare.gov website -- >> you can tell us when you'll be able to have some of these issues repaired? >> reporter: ignored questions -- >> about the delays do you feel you had an opportunity to explain that today? >> reporter: but did take an oath to answer congress truthfully. grilled for more than four hours. >> is that a system you're proud of? >> these problems need to be fixed fast. >> reporter: contractors responsible for different parts of the health care website and enrollment process claim they did their jobs well and working to fix system bugs. >> you keep speak about unaccepted volumes. pro flowers doesn't crash on valentine's day. >> reporter: as the day wore on contractors gave a more frank assessment. >> we're not excited nor pleased what we delivered on october 1. but, you know, in principle it worked. >> reporter: contractors said the government agency in charge waited too long to test all the parts together weeks before it launched. >> what's the industry recommended st

thomas. >> nbc's kelly o'donnell keeping an eye on all things congress. kelly, thanks so much. >>> joining me right now is democratic senator from montana, jon tester. sir, it's good to have you here. the senate reconvenes in just a couple hours from now. this morning's "washington post" is suggesting that the troubled relationship between harry reid and mitch mcconnell could be the thing holding up this deal. we know senator harry reid wants to weed this sequester into this deal. you've warned that this is like playing with fire. are democrats in danger of overplaying their hand because of the polls showing republicans are taking the bulk of the blame? >> well, i think ultimately what needs to happen at this point in time, and it's unfortunate what we've gotten to this point, is that we need to get a plan that's going to work for the country and give some predictability to the economy moving forward. look, both harry and mitch are adults here. they understand the impacts of fooling around with this debt ceiling. i am hopeful and somewhat confident that th

washington standards, the anger and anxiousness are building tonight, as we begin here with nbc's kelly o'donnell on capitol hill. kelly, good evening. >> reporter: good evening, brian. late developments. sources are telling me this is the closest congress has been to resolving this issue. senate leaders have reached a framework of a deal that would put the government back in business through january 15th and let the federal government borrow money for another four months. but this is a senate deal so far. they'll sleep on it tonight. more finishing touches tomorrow. so it is not a done deal yet. on day 14, caution tape and barricades did not keep out frustrated visitors at the national monuments. >> peanut butter sandwiches? >> reporter: while the president used the backdrop of a local food pantry to deliver a dire warning about what could happen if congress fails to let the federal government reopen and borrow more money by the thursday deadline. >> we stand a good chance of defaulting. and defaulting would have a potentially devastating effect on our economy. >> reporter: an unexpected twist.

thank you, kelly o'donnell. >>> we're seeing the crisis play out on wall street, stocks took a hit today, all three major indexes were down, and as we mentioned at the top of the broadcast we're getting the first signs of serious concern in the credit ratings market. the fitch ratings agency has put the united states triple a rating on a possible downgrade if of course this doesn't get resol resolved. andrew, the public is now aware they are playing with fire, and they're playing with company money, our money. what happens if this happens? >> if this happens, we are -- the 2008 financial crisis will look like child's play if we actually go into extra inni inningin inningininnings. if we default or even get close to the possibility of defaulting, all of our assets will skyrocket, if somebody is going to loan you a dollar and they think they won't get paid back when they should get paid back they charge you more. and that will impact everything, how much money the country has, a 1 percentage point increase is a $20 billion cost annually, that is money no longer going to goods and services

kelly o'donnell, nbc news, the capitol. >> reporter: some of the toughest questions today were about security on healthcare.gov. >> don't you think you have an obligation to tell the american people that we're going to put new this system, but beware, your information is likely to be vulnerable? would you commit, today, to shut down the system and do an end to end security test? >> no, sir. if you read the memo -- >> oh, i have read it. >> reporter: that internal government memo warned that testing of the site was not finished, exposing a level of uncertainty that can be deemed as a high risk. sebelius said that hhs officials were taking steps to tighten security. >> it is under way right now. but daily and weekly monitoring and testing is under way. >> i was very alarmed. >> reporter: privacy was a subject of heated debate before the site launched. he was chief of the social security administration under both presidents bush and obama until last february and tells nbc news he protested. that officials were carving out exemptions from the privacy act. >> i was extremely upset. it wou

kelly o'donnell reports a number of republican senators will vote yes to send a signal to house republicans that the deal will pass and give cover to house republican leadership so they will not need to provide all of the votes. house republicans are expected to meet in about an hour later today. the deal yields no concessions to republicans and reopens the government through mid-january and extends the government's ability to borrow through early february. it also locks in reduced spending levels as established under the sequester. joining me now, luke russert and nbc news white house correspondent kristen wielker. >>> luke, time has not been set but aides will expect there will be a vote this evening. what else can you tell me. >> reporter: it's going to start in the senate and the reason it's going to start over there is because the idea is they want to move something over to the house that has a lot of republican support as kelly o'donnell mentioned in your report. this gives the house a little cover. expect the senate to vote between 5:00 and 8:00 tonight, could be earlier or later but

nbc's capitol hill correspondent kelly o'donnell joins me live now. kelly, let's talk about this potential proposal for this extension. luke russert and yourself already reporting that it is not quite clear if speaker boehner even has the support needed for this proprosal if it gets to the floor. >> the hardest line, tea party conservatives, would be the toughest sell. don't expect them to go along with this easily. there might be broader support because we're now into day ten. it feels even longer than that on capitol hill because there was so much buildup before the shutdown took effect. i think today is the first day where we can honestly say there feels like genuine progress. we're this deep into it, and that's the first time we can tell you that. so the numbers will unfold. we'll find out what the vote count ultimately is. there will be enormous pressure brought to bear on republican members to get together on this and in essence keep their leverage going by agreeing to do the debt ceiling piece, assuming president goes along with that, and having

>> kelly o'donnell at the hill. let's check in with the other component of this. the other end of pennsylvania avenue at the white house. chuck todd standing by on the north lawn. chuck, what's the situation there? >> reporter: well, the white house and the president in particular have been trying to be careful not to say too much. they don't want to upend the deal. they have been very quiet today. they were very quiet yesterday. it almost looked as if they were being a bystander. but remember, brian, this was his strategy. months ago he told senate democratic leaders and house democratic leaders he was not going to give in on this. he didn't want them to give in. no negotiating over the debt the limit. there is a belief here in the white house that they feel they have won on that battle and that they have helped future presidents down the road because they think that's the wrong way to go. but they are trying not to gloat because, after all, brian, we have opened up government for all of 90 days. >> chuck todd, north lawn of the white house tonight. thanks. >>> h

kelly o'donnell is standing by. the last government shutdown, 21 days as i mentioned at the top of the show, the conventional wisdom is we don't see movement today, this could mean the long haul. what is that defined as right now? >> reporter: i've been asking that of every office holder i meet, i hear from a few days to a couple of weeks and to when the debt ceiling fight will be at its fever pitch later this month. sources in both parties are saying there's talk of the house trying to take interim steps, incremental moves that could pass some bills that relate to protecting things likes veterans affairs, for example. this is similar to the program where they were able to keep the military checks coming. the house passioned it and senate passed it and the president signed it last night and they released a video for the troops overnight saying they would get paychecks. is it possible they will take a step at a time approach to try to restore pieces of the government? that's one thing that is being discussed right no