Trump-Democrat Talks Stall as US Faces Imminent Government Shutdown

According to Rokna, citing The Guardian, a high-pressure meeting between Donald Trump and senior congressional Democrats on Monday ended without any clear breakthrough in negotiations to keep the government open, with JD Vance stating afterward, “I think we are heading into a shutdown.”

Democrats, who are refusing to back the GOP’s legislation to continue funding beyond Tuesday unless it includes several healthcare provisions, expressed a more optimistic tone after the Oval Office meeting, which also included the Republican leaders of the Senate and House.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said he had outlined his concerns regarding the state of healthcare in the country to Trump, adding, “He seemed, for the first time, to understand the magnitude of this crisis. We hope he will talk to the Republican leaders and tell them we need bipartisan input on healthcare and the decisions in their bill. Their bill does not have these—they never consulted us.”

However, there was little sign that Republicans had shifted from their demand that Senate Democrats vote for their bill, which would keep the government open through November 21, allowing long-term funding talks to continue. The GOP passed that bill through the House earlier this month on a near party-line vote, but it requires at least some Democratic support to advance in the Senate.

“This is purely and simply hostage-taking by the Democrats,” said Senate Majority Leader John Thune. Referring to the Republican funding proposal, Thune added, “We could pick it up and pass it tonight, and pass it tomorrow before the government shuts down.”

Vance sought to pin responsibility for any shutdown on the Democrats, stating, “I think we are heading into a shutdown because the Democrats won’t do the right thing. I hope they change their mind, but we’ll see.”

Trump has not publicly commented on the meeting, which was closed to reporters. In an earlier interview with CBS News, the president said, “I just don’t know how we are going to solve this issue,” and accused Democrats of “not being interested in waste, fraud, and abuse.”

The Democratic stance on healthcare comes as the party aims to regain footing with voters ahead of next year’s midterm elections, where they are seen as having a chance to regain control of the House and reduce the GOP’s Senate majority.

The party has refused to support the GOP funding proposal unless it includes an extension of subsidies for Affordable Care Act (ACA) health plans, which expire at year-end. They also seek the reversal of cuts to Medicaid, the program providing healthcare to low-income and disabled Americans, and funding for public media, which Republicans approved earlier this year.

Schumer suggested that Democrats may be willing to compromise. Outside the White House, he said Trump is “the decision-maker, and if he accepts some of the things we ask, which we think the American people support, regarding healthcare and rescissions, he can avoid a shutdown, but there are still major differences between us.”

If Congress does not act, a shutdown would begin Wednesday at midnight, furloughing federal workers and closing government agencies. Last week, the White House Office of Management and Budget released a memo indicating it would use a shutdown to conduct further mass firings as part of its effort to reduce bureaucracy.

A Morning Consult poll released Monday found that 45% of voters would blame congressional Republicans for a shutdown, while 32% would blame Democrats.

In March, House Democrats voted against a Republican bill to extend government funding, only for Schumer to encourage colleagues to advance it through the Senate, warning that a shutdown then would be “devastating.” The episode fueled disillusionment with the minority leader among the Democratic base.

On Monday afternoon, reports circulated that Schumer had discussed with Democratic lawmakers the possibility of voting for a bill to keep the government open for about a week. At a press conference later, Schumer insisted he would not change his demands. He said, “We have to get it done. The way to do this is the president, who is really listening to us, tells the Republicans to do it.”