As I write, a government shutdown is scheduled for a little under eight hours from now. At this point, it’s dominating the news. If it happens, and it probably will, the fault will rest 100% with Donald Trump and the Republican Party. However they have engineered it in such a devious way, that they may be able to convince voters that it’s Democrats’ fault.
The House approved a stopgap spending bill on Thursday night to keep the government open past Friday, but Senate Democrats — angered by President Trump’s vulgar aspersions and a lack of progress on a broader budget and immigration deal — appeared ready to block the measure.
The House approved the measure 230 to 197, despite conflicting signals by President Trump sent throughout the day and a threatened rebellion from conservatives that ended up fizzling. But the bill, which would keep the government open through Feb. 16, provided only a faint glimmer of hope that a crisis could be averted before funding expires at midnight on Friday.
In the Senate, at least about a dozen Democratic votes would be needed to approve the measure, and there was little chance that those would materialize. Democrats are intent on securing concessions that would, among other things, protect from deportation young immigrants brought to the country illegally as children, increase domestic spending, aid Puerto Rico and bolster the government’s response to the opioid crisis.
The Senate held only a procedural vote on the stopgap bill late Thursday night, leaving for Friday a more consequential vote when Democrats are expected to block the measure.
In addition to keeping the government open, the bill would provide funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program for six years, and it would delay or suspend a handful of taxes imposed by the Affordable Care Act… [emphasis added]
Inserted from <NY Times>
Brian Williams covered the House measure.
Here’s the Republican deceit. CHIP enjoys strong support on both sides of the aisle, and it would pass without having to count votes at any other time. The only reason is has not passed already is that Republicans have kept it off the floor to use it as a tool to to blackmail Democrats. That way, they get what they want, more hits to ObamaCare, in return for something they were going to support anyway!
That is so ludicrous that there is no way Democrats should fall for it. However, since the courts have ordered the Republican Reich to keep the Dreamers safe, their status does not become a critical issue until March, so allowing a short CR would still leave time to hold the line on DACA.
Because funding the government is an immediate emergency, and DACA is a two month emergency, Republicans can make it look like Democrats are at fault for the shutdown. To you and I, it’s obvious that isn’t true, because we understand the Republican scam. However, the US electorate are the least sophisticated and most politically ignorant voters in the world. My proof is this. Donald Trump, albeit with Russian help, was able to get enough votes to steal the White House. Were I not correct, that could not have happened.
Can we afford to leave the judgment of whose fault a shutdown is to the US electorate? I’m just not sure.
RESIST THE REPUBLICAN REICH!!
TGIF!
