in the mire

Ensnared or entangled in a situation that is not ideal or desirable and from which escape or improvement is difficult or unlikely. The company's smartphone division has been stuck in the mire for the last few years, failing to make any headway against its competitors. It's yet another piece of legislation that is now in the mire because of endless political infighting. Those two are still in the mire? Geez, I figured they must have broken up by now.