Democrat AND Republican senators say ANOTHER stopgap funding bill may be necessary to avoid a government shutdown in just four days: Biden to meet with Big Four leaders on Tuesday as spending talks sputter amid pressure to send aid to Ukraine and Israel

With less than five days before the next government funding deadline, both Democratic and Republican senators admit another short-term, stopgap funding measure will likely be needed. 

Biden is convening a meeting of the Big Four congressional leaders on Tuesday to discuss a path forward on spending amid a looming shutdown and make a last-ditch plea for foreign aid to a hesitant Speaker Mike Johnson. 

Biden, Johnson, R-La., House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., must come to agreement on spending legislation before Friday at midnight - when funding for four of 12 government agencies will expire.

And weeks ago the Senate passed a $95 billion bill to offer aid to Ukraine, Israel, Gaza and the Indo-Pacific that Johnson has resisted bringing up in the House without border security measures. 

After meeting with Schumer on Monday, McConnell told reporters: 'No, we're not going to shut the government down.'

Johnson orchestrated the so-called 'laddered' continuing resolution, or CR, as a means to punt the funding deadline down the road on two different deadlines. For four agencies, funding runs out on March 1. For the other eight, it'll expire one week later on March 8. 

Biden is convening a meeting of the Big Four congressional leaders on Tuesday to discuss a path forward on spending amid a looming shutdown and make a last-ditch plea for foreign aid to a hesitant Speaker Mike Johnson

The House does not return to Washington until Wednesday evening, just two days before the shutdown. 

'I think we should just do another resolution until like the 8th of March and do the whole shebang at once,' Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., told DailyMail.com. 

Virginia Democrat Sen. Tim Kaine suggested 'at least do a couple of weeks' extension.' 'There is no reason whatsoever that the government should shut down,' he told DailyMail.com.

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, predicted Schumer would 'force' a government shutdown for political purposes. 

'We'll see if Chuck Schumer and the speaker can reach an agreement or not,' he told DailyMail.com. 'I have long thought it was likely that Schumer in the White House will force a shutdown sometime this year, because I think the Democrats believe it is in their political interest to force a shutdown because the press will reliably blamed Republicans.' 

Weekend negotiations for a spending plan on the first four agencies -  Agriculture, Energy-Water, Military Construction-VA and Transportation-HUD - seemed to stall out - text was expected Sunday evening but was not released. 

Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., told DailyMail.com Congress would 'ideally' get appropriations bills negotiated and passed by both chambers this week, but 'alternatively, we're going to have to do another continuing resolution.' 

'I don't think we should shut down the government,' Rubio said. 

Schumer wrote a letter to colleagues Sunday night blaming House Republicans for the holdup. 

'[I]t is clear now that House Republicans need more time to sort themselves out,' Schumer wrote. 'It is my sincere hope that in the face of a disruptive shutdown that would hurt our economy and make American families less safe, Speaker Johnson will step up to once again buck the extremists in his caucus and do the right thing.' 

Johnson hit back to call Schumer's letter 'counterproductive' and said there are ongoing 'good faith' agreements to reach agreement. 

He blamed the holdup on 11th-hour Democratic demands 'that were not previously included in the Senate bills,' including new spending 'priorities that are farther left than what their chamber agreed upon.' 

Democrats have been pushing for another $1 billion for the  USDA's Special Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC). 

The House's Agriculture appropriations bill would fund the program at 2023 levels. 

'This is not a time for petty politics. House Republicans will continue to work in good faith and hope to reach an outcome as soon as possible, even as we continue to insist that our own border security must be addressed immediately.' 

Some right-wing conservatives have demanded border security provisions be attached to spending legislation, which could thwart any chance of passing both chambers.

But they've come around to the idea of another CR - with the House's Freedom Caucus and other fiscal hawks advocating for giving up on appropriations talks and pursuing a full year CR. 

'If Congress goes past April 30 on a CR, all discretionary spending is cut 1%!' Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., noted on X of a provision that was named 'the Massie Rule' after him.

A one percent, across the board spending cut was written into the Fiscal Responsibility Act, the debt limit deal negotiated between former Speaker Kevin McCarthy and Biden.