Congress has agreed on a temporary spending bill to fund the federal government through Dec. 20. The House GOP’s hotly debated SAVE Act didn’t make the final cut. We’ll get into what did make it into the bill beyond bare-bones funding measures. And, a wave of homeowners are looking to refinance their mortgages as borrowing costs ease. Plus, we’ll cry happy tears over a “Homeward Bound” story come to life.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• “Kushner’s Fund Has Reaped Millions in Fees, but So Far Returned No Profits” from The New York Times
• “US Mortgage Rates Fall Again, Triggering Big Wave of Refinancing” from Bloomberg
• “The final countdown” from Punchbowl News
• “Shippers scramble for workarounds ahead of looming US East Coast port strike” from Reuters
• “Cat Missing in Yellowstone Returns Home to California After an 800-Mile Trek” from The New York Times
• Tweet from Jacqui Heinrich about President Biden’s hot mic moment on “The View”

Got any questions about inflation or interest rates? Send ’em to makemesmart@marketplace.org or leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART.