politico:

When Puerto Rico took its first major step toward a catastrophic default on Monday, lawmakers on Capitol Hill — where Puerto Rican officials looked for help — were nowhere to be found, having gone home for a one week recess last Friday.

The island began defaulting on most of a $422 million debt payment Sunday at midnight, but much bigger problems are just around the corner. Congress has just a handful of weeks to hammer out a legislative fix to save the island from financial ruin ahead of a second default on a $2 billion debt payment due in early July.

But while GOP congressional staff is working through the break to sketch out a Plan B — with an eye towards unveiling it around May 10 — getting a fix off the ground before July could be a major lift: House GOP leadership will have to convince enough conservatives to back a bill that’s been labeled a “bailout” by some. Democrats, too, will likely have to whip their own to back the deal — which could include provisions they don’t like, perhaps even a minimum wage cut for the territory.

And after all that, the Senate will still have to act quickly — no sure bet, given the chamber’s history of taking its time to pass legislation.

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