GOP plan calls for blaming the Democrats
WASHINGTON — Republicans have made one thing clear about the looming threat of a government shutdown: They may not agree on how to stop it, but they’re united in their plan to blame Democrats for it.
This is despite the fact that, by Republicans’ own admission, members of the GOP are responsible for blowing up a potential deal to fund the government while providing relief to young immigrants who were brought into the country illegally by their parents.
“The ‘Gang of Six’ deal to fix DACA will not get a vote in the House or the Senate because POTUS will not sign it. Let’s go back to the drawing board and get this done,” Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), tweeted yesterday morning.
The message confirmed that President Trump had torpedoed any hope that the DACA compromise that was hammered out by Sens. Dick Durbin (DIll.), Lindsey Graham (RS.C.) and other lawmakers would be included in this stopgap spending measure.
The announcement spurred Graham to declare that he would be a “no” vote on the short-term spending bill.
Meanwhile, on the House side, where the spending bill can pass without Democratic support, conservative Freedom Caucus Republicans said they, too, are willing to vote against the measure to keep it from passing before Friday night’s deadline.
“At what point do you quit kicking the can down the road and passing just another (continuing resolution) in hopes that things get better in a few weeks?” caucus chairman Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) said.
The one place where Republican leaders in the White House and Congress agree is the need to blame Democrats for the government employee furloughs and darkened federal offices that will result if a deal is not struck by Friday night.
“The President certainly doesn’t want a shutdown. And if one happens I think you only have one place to look and that’s to the Democrats who are holding our military and our national security hostage,” White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters yesterday, echoing tweets by Trump.
“It makes no sense for Democrats to bring this to a shutdown,” House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) told reporters yesterday.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell also laid any shutdown blame on lawmakers across the aisle.
While discussing Democrats who demand DACA language in the bill, McConnell said, “There’s no cause whatsoever for manufacturing a crisis and holding up funding for the vital services of the federal government.”