On Friday, the House and Senate approved a measure to fund the government only through Tuesday, but the food safety bill was attached to the Omnibus spending bill, which was withdrawn because of lack of votes.
Asked about the status of the food safety bill during a morning press conference covered by C-Span, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) said he hoped the measure would be included in "the wrap up" of the lame duck session. "The good news is it is not dead, the conversation is still alive on the floor of the Senate," reports Food Safety News. However, Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK), the bill's most outspoken critic, told ABC News, "It's not going anywhere. It's dead."
Key Democrats maintain they will work to include the bill--which easily passed the House and Senate, but got caught in a constitutional glitch--in the final agreement.
