But that might be a harder sell, said a Congressional staff member working on the Senate's still evolving emergency bill.

He's been very busy, you know, what with all the emergency bills that have to be acted on before Congress recesses.

He wants them to vote instead for his emergency bill, which cannot be amended.

In the last few years, huge chunks of the federal budget have been channeled through emergency supplemental bills.

After two days of intense haggling, they had not begun to fight over how to pay for the emergency bill.

But that emergency bill may finally be bringing its owner some good fortune.

The House and Senate each have approved the emergency bill but in different forms.

The emergency bill stems from the fact that the Pentagon does not budget for wars or peacekeeping operations.

If it is not, he said, he will continue to run the state, using emergency bills.

"If there is a demonstrated need, we'll do the emergency bill next week," she said.