A quick resolution appears hopeless as Republicans and Democrats entrench. Democrats want the Senate to approve House-passed measures to temporarily reopen the government — without wall money — and allow border security talks to continue. Trump has threatened to veto the proposals, and the GOP-held Senate has pledged to oppose anything the president refuses to sign.
A few Republican senators have said they would support legislation to reopen the eight departments other than Homeland Security to secure pay for the vast majority of federal workers. After Trump attended a Senate GOP caucus meeting Wednesday, the president and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell aimed to show a united front behind Trump’s border wall demands.
In a tweet Thursday morning, Trump contended “there is GREAT unity with the Republicans in the House and Senate.”
As any semblance of talks collapsed Wednesday, the shutdown fight increasingly turned into a battle of rhetoric. Schumer said the president threw a “temper tantrum” during the White House talks and slammed his fist on the table.
Vice President Mike Pence disputed the characterization Wednesday, stressing that the president handed out candy to the negotiators. Trump also denied Schumer’s description on Thursday, saying he “politely said bye-bye and left, no slamming!”
“I very calmly walked out of the room,” he added as he left for Texas. “I didn’t smash the table. I should have, but I didn’t smash the table.”
As the shutdown drags on, Pelosi and Schumer have increasingly turned the focus to federal workers who will start to miss paychecks during the closure. About 800,000 U.S. employees are either furloughed or working without pay during the shutdown.
Schumer plans to speak Thursday to urge Senate Republicans to hold a vote on the House-passed spending measures.
“If Leader McConnell or Republicans object, thousands of federal workers—and the families who rely on them—will go without a paycheck,” he said in a tweet.
Asked about the workers who will suffer from the shutdown, Trump instead questioned whether Democrats care about crime or murders that he tied to illegal immigration. He again claimed many federal workers agree with his stance on the shutdown — even though U.S. employee unions have decried the government closure.
The Trump administration has put a price tag of at least $25 billion on a wall for the full U.S.-Mexico border. Therefore, the fight could rage on even if lawmakers break the impasse over the president’s $5 billion demand.
from Viral News Reports http://bit.ly/2D2OxdP
0 Comments