Trump the dealmaker comes up short ahead of shutdown
WASHINGTON » He wrote a book on the art of negotiation and was elected to office claiming he alone could end Washington gridlock, but President Donald Trump’s latest attempt to broker a big, bipartisan deal has turned into a big mess.
The failure to find consensus on immigration and spending is a blow to Trump’s presidency on the anniversary of his inauguration — and perhaps more painfully, a blow to his brand as a wheelerdealer. The funding feud, which led to a government shutdown at midnight Friday, is the second time Trump has dived into a negotiation and come up short on a top priority. As with failed talks about overhauling the nation’s health system, Trump has again slammed into the difficulties of Washington’s particular mix of tricky politics and complex policy.
“Negotiating in politics is a lot different than real estate,” said GOP strategist Alex Conant. “In Washington, not everybody wants to make a deal. Trump’s initial premise that politicians just needed to be prodded more to make a deal was always flawed. Nobody runs for Congress because they want to compromise their principles. They want to advance their agendas.”
Democrats’ agenda in this case is, chiefly, protection for the 700,000 young immigrants who may face deportation when the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program expires in March. Republicans are seeking more time to talk and a longterm funding bill that would provide the Pentagon with major increases.
It’s not been entirely clear what the president’s agenda is. Over the past few weeks, he has expressed openness to extending the DACA program, but then rejected a bipartisan plan on that front. He fired off a tweet that appeared to reject the GOP plan for a shortterm funding bill that would buy time for more negotiation, but the White House walked it back. He abruptly tried to cut a broad deal with Sen. Chuck Schumer, the Democratic leader and a fellow New Yorker, and then backed off.
“I’m looking for something that President Trump supports,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., told reporters on Wednesday, two days before the shutdown deadline. “And he’s not yet indicated what measure he’s willing to sign. As soon as we figure out what he is for, then I would be convinced that we were not just spinning our wheels going to this issue on the floor, but actually dealing with a bill that has a chance to become law and therefore solve the problem.”