Negotiators on U.S. border security funds eye deal by Monday: lawmakers

Despite optimism among Senate and House of Representatives negotiators, contingency plans also were being made in case the talks falter.Rather than push the Department of Homeland Security and several other federal agencies into a second partial shutdown when their funding expires on Feb. 15, the group of 17 lawmakers were preparing a stop-gap appropriations bill to keep them operating beyond that date.Democratic Representative Nita Lowey, a lead negotiator, told Reuters in a brief hallway inter