No solution in partisan stalemate, blame shifts

WASHINGTON — The federal government shutdown continues for a third day today, as the Senate appeared to inch closer to ending a partisan stalemate late yesterday but fell short of agreement.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said negotiations were still underway into the night, with a vote to break a Democratic filibuster on a short-term funding bill scheduled for noon today. Seeking to win over holdout votes, McConnell pledged yesterday that the Senate would take up legislation on some top Democratic priorities, including immigration, if they aren’t already addressed by Feb. 8.

“We have yet to reach an agreement on a path forward,” Schumer said, adding that talks would continue.

McConnell’s commitment follows hours of behind-the-scenes talks between the leaders and rank-and-file lawmakers over how to end the twoday display of legislative dysfunction. The Senate adjourned without voting last night, guaranteeing the shutdown would continue into a third day today.

Republicans have appeared increasingly confident that Democrats were bearing the brunt of criticism for the shutdown and would buckle. There were indications yesterday that Democratic resolve was beginning to waver, with growing worries that a prolonged shutdown could prove to be an electoral headache for the party just as they have grown confident about their prospects in November.

Signs of the shutdown were evident at national parks and in some federal agencies. Social Security and most other safety-net programs were unaffected by the lapse in federal spending authority. Critical government functions continued, with uniformed service members, health inspectors and law enforcement officers set to work without pay.

Democrats, who initially dug in on a demand for legislation to protect about 700,000 immigrants who were brought illegally to the country as children, shifted to blame the shutdown on the incompetence of President Trump and the Republican leadership. Republicans argued that Democrats shuttered the government over “illegal immigration” in a bid to gin up enthusiasm among their base.