Thread: Live Updates – Schumer Amnesty Shutdown: Washington on Edge as Cliff Approaches

Chad Pergram



@ChadPergram


We are told there is no deal after WH mtg between Trump/


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Chad Pergram



@ChadPergram



Pelosi now on Hse side. Meeting with Schumer after mtg with Trump. Durbin in there too



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Chad Pergram



@ChadPergram


Schumer: We had a long and detailed meeting, we discussed all of the major outstanding issues, we made some progress, and we still have a good number of disagreements. The discussions will continu

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Chad Pergram



@ChadPergram


If no deal at WH, expect Senate to set cloture vote to end debate on Hse-passed CR. That could prompt horsetrading later

UPDATE 2:55 P.M.


Schumer ducked out of the White House dodging reporters into a black SUV, a bad sign for the Democrats as they face a tough vote on whether they will shut the government down or not.

Chuck Schumer leaves the White House in his SUV – does not respond to shouted questions from reporters
— Charlie Spiering (@charliespiering) January 19, 2018

Shutdown fever is gripping the White House as well:

Shutdown fever at the White House as reporters rush @kellyannepollshttps://t.co/gKux6n8N2X
— Charlie Spiering (@charliespiering) January 19, 2018

Schumer talked to reporters later as well, signaling that he and the Democrats are still refusing to get to a deal:

SCHUMER on meeting with TRUMP: "We had a long and detailed meeting. We discussed all of the major outstanding issues, we made some progress, but we still have a good number of disagreements. The discussions will continue."
— Joe Perticone (@JoePerticone) January 19, 2018

Schumer: Progress but no deal yet
— Scott Wong (@scottwongDC) January 19, 2018

Also, Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA)–Hillary Clinton’s running mate in their failed 2016 campaign for the White House–said, per CNN, that “we’re close” to a deal.

Chad Pergram



@ChadPergram




Colleague Jason Donner rpts Cornyn talked to WH CoS Kelly. Says ball is in Schumer’s court. When asked if was frustrated with members of his own party who are against the CR, he replied “not at all.”


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Chad Pergram



@ChadPergram


Cotton: Donald trump won our party’s nomination. Lindsey Graham didn’t even make it to the starting line. The voters have made it clear that they want Donald trump’s approach to immigration.

UPDATE 4:32 P.M.

CNN’s polling data, as noted by Jake Tapper live on air just now, finds that 56 percent of Americans think stopping a government shutdown is more important than fixing DACA. Only 34 percent think a DACA fix is more important. That puts the Democrats in an awful position, and it is why Sens. Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Joe Donnelly (D-IN) have abandoned Schumer’s position on this matter–and it’s why many of the other Democrats conference-wide in the Senate like Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) continue to refuse to say where they stand on this matter.

Tapper is currently ripping Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO)–a member of the 2013 “Gang of Eight” amnesty plotters–apart live on CNN trying to get him to answer for Schumer’s actions. Bennet is struggling, as Schumer runs out of messengers to send out on TV–all while Durbin, Schumer’s number two, said everything rides on what Schumer does next.

UPDATE 4:23 P.M.

The Democrat dam is beginning to burst open. Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) is already widely viewed as a “yea” vote on the House-passed funding bill, and now Sen. Joe Donnelly (D-IN)–another red state Democrat up for re-election in 2018–has announced he will vote for the bill. Schumer is in trouble as he aims to hold his conference together.

UPDATE 4:13 P.M.

The Democrats will not be able to hide much longer. Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn, per Fox News’ Chad Pergram, has announced that the Senate will hold its cloture vote on the bipartisan House-passed Continuing Resolution to keep the government open.

If Senate Democrats do not vote for this legislation–it needs 60 votes to pass–then they alone will be responsible for the government shutdown, imperiling their midterm election chances.


UPDATE 4:07 P.M.

A new CNN poll finds that a plurality of Americans would blame Democrats if the government shuts down–a total of 31 percent. Only 21 percent would blame President Trump, and only 26 percent would blame congressional Republicans. Another 10 percent would blame all three groups. This polling data is not good for Democrats, especially as Schumer is getting blamed for this even by Durbin as per CNN’s Manu Raju and Ted Barrett.
On television, CNN’s Jake Tapper compared these numbers back to previous polling data from shutdowns during the Barack Obama and Bill Clinton administrations–and found that Republicans are in much better shape than years past.

As the debate rages even more, the situation is likely to get worse for Democrats as they alone have the power to keep the government open–no matter how much they complain about Republicans controlling the House, Senate, and White House. Per current Senate rules, 60 votes are needed to pass the government funding bill. That means Democrats have the power to stop a shutdown if they wanted to.


UPDATE 4:03 P.M.

Nancy Pelosi and Dick Durbin attempted to sneak out of Chuck Schumer’s office after their powwow, but CNN of all networks cornered them–and in a conversation with a CNN reporter, Durbin put everything on Schumer’s shoulders.

Again, if the government shuts down, now even top Democrats like the Senate Minority Whip Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) are admitting that it will be Schumer’s and the Democrats’ responsibility.


UPDATE 3:34 P.M.

The Democrats are clearly not taking this seriously, as Sen. Pat Leahy (D-VT) is roaming around Capitol Hill with a camera taking photos–rather than trying to keep the government open.
Again, not to belabor the point, but the electoral calamity that exists on the road ahead for Democrats if they vote against keeping the government open–and for a shutdown–when the Senate takes up the House-passed government funding bill cannot be understated. Photos like this of Democrats horsing around rather than trying to govern will likely not come in handy for Democrats in tough races in the midterm elections.


UPDATE 3:29 P.M.

EPA administrator Scott Pruitt sent a message to agency employees informing them that the agency, even in the event of a shutdown, will operate as per usual for at least a week.
“As many of you are aware, annual funding for the government expires at midnight,” Pruitt wrote to EPA employees in a message obtained by Breitbart News. “At this time EPA has sufficient resources to remain open for a limited amount of time in the event of a government shutdown. All EPA employees should follow their normal work schedule for the week of January 22, 2018. Should the shutdown occur and remain in place through January 26, 2018, we will provide further updates on the agency’s operating status. In addition, all travel needs to be approved by the Administrator’s Office. Thank you for your hard work, dedication, and patience through this process, and for all that you do for the EPA and the American people.”


UPDATE 3:25 P.M.

As their party’s future in the midterm elections hinges on what they do next, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin rushed into Schumer’s office after Schumer’s White House meeting with Trump–in order to get a readout of what happened and figure out what to do next.
Democrats are really up a creek here–they voted against children’s health insurance (the CHIP program) in the House en masse on Thursday evening and would get all the blame for a government shutdown if a dozen plus Senate Democrats don’t vote for the bipartisan House-passed bill. A lot rides on what happens next, and all the pressure is on them–not the Republicans, who did their job.


UPDATE 3:18 P.M.

Some of Washington’s favorite haunts, like Capitol Hill bar Capitol Lounge, are having fun preparing for a potential government shutdown:


UPDATE 3:15 P.M.

More from inside Schumer’s meeting with Trump, per Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX)–the Senate Majority Whip–who spoke with White House chief of staff John Kelly afterwards. Kelly was inside the meeting with Trump and Schumer.

In other words, Schumer will not get bailed out by Trump. He can have his members walk his party off the plank by voting against the House-passed Continuing Resolution, imperiling Democrats’ midterm election chances by making them vote for a government shutdown, or Schumer can step up and provide the votes to keep the government open.


UPDATE 3:12 P.M.

Sen. Doug Jones (D-AL), the new radical leftist Democrat senator from Alabama who was elected amid a firestorm of allegations that sank his conservative Republican opponent, is noncommittal on the House-passed spending bill. But he is not opposed to voting for the bill in the end–as voting against it would undermine his chances at re-election in 2020.


UPDATE 3:10 P.M.

Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) shoots down Lindsey Graham once again, as the radical open borders senator from South Carolina keeps attempting to empower the Democrats while undercutting President Trump in these negotiations.


UPDATE 3:07 P.M.

As Chuck Schumer continues to jeopardize his party’s midterm election chances by steering the government towards a shutdown, the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) is out with new videos ripping apart Democratic congressional candidates across the country. Here is one such video:

(at Link)

On Thursday evening, six Democrats joined 224 Republicans–230 votes in total on a bipartisan basis–to pass out of the House a funding measure to keep the government open. Now, Schumer and his Senate Democrats–in lock step with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi–are refusing to vote to keep the government open, jeopardizing Democrat election chances nationwide.

Along with the release of these NRCC videos, NRCC communications director Matt Gorman released this statement: “The unconscionable vote these House Democrats took last night will be a major campaign issue in 2018. To Pelosi and Washington Democrats: fund the government. Fund CHIP. Do it now.”


The ads, per the NRCC, target vulnerable Democrats in 10 different districts:

(AZ-01) Tom O’Halleran
(CA-07) Ami Bera
(CA-36) Raul Ruiz
(IA-02) Dave Loebsack
(MA-09) Bill Keating
(MI-05) Dan Kildee
(MN-0 Rick Nolan
(NY-1 Sean Patrick Maloney
(PA-17) Matt Cartwright
(CA-52) Scott Peters

UPDATE 3:01 P.M.

There still appears to be no deal.

Trump’s move of bringing Schumer himself to the White House makes it very clear here that the Democrats in the Senate–at Schumer’s behest–are solely responsible for the shutdown if one happens. If a shutdown happens, every Democrat who votes against cloture for the government funding bill passed by the House will own what happens next, throwing the Democratic Party into further chaos walking into the all-important midterm elections. In other words, Trump schooled Schumer at the White House and boxed in the Democratic leader.

UPDATE 2:58 P.M.

Per this video from Capitol Hill reporters, Schumer is refusing to answer questions about his continued refusal to keep the government open–making matters even worse for Democratic senators facing tough re-election battles in 2018:


It’s worth noting Schumer almost never refuses to take questions. He is known for lunging at opportunities to talk with the media.

Chad Pergram



@ChadPergram

Colleague John Roberts rpts Schumer presented Trump with a nbr of domestic issues beyond just DACA. Trump seemed perplexed & told Schumer he wasn’t going to get all he asked for. But there could be an opening for a short-term CR to avoid a shutdown

Mitch needs to call for the vote in the Senate. Put the DemoQuacks on the record with their blackmail treason against Americans.

UPDATE 7:35 P.M.


Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO) is coming under serious fire as well, as she continues to refuse to say whether she will vote for a government shutdown–or whether she will vote for cloture on the House-passed funding bill that has bipartisan support as well backing from several of her Senate colleagues. She keeps refusing to answer.

UPDATE 7:33 P.M.


White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders is calling out Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT) for his intransigence against the bipartisan House-passed government funding bill, and his refusal to stand with Democrats and Republicans alike to vote for keeping the government open. It remains to be seen whether Tester will vote for a government shutdown at 10 p.m. this evening when the Senate considers cloture on the House-passed funding bill, but some reports have said that Tester will vote against it.
Meanwhile, on CNN, Sen. Tom Carper (D-MD) announced his plans to vote against cloture on the bill–and for a government shutdown.
UPDATE 7:26 P.M.


The far-left of the Senate Democratic conference–Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Kamala Harris (D-CA), and Jeff Merkley (D-OR)–are holding a rally with so-called DREAMer illegal aliens outside the capitol right now:

But the rankled Democratic Senate conference will be holding a closed-door meeting at 8:30 p.m. tonight as Schumer struggles to hold his team together:


UPDATE 7:23 P.M.


The silence from Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) is deafening. He continues to refuse to say whether he supports keeping the government open, or whether he will vote for a government shutdown by voting against cloture on the House-passed government funding bill at 10 p.m. on Friday night when the Senate votes.

He has been silent all day since late Thursday when the House voted. Nelson’s intransigence severely jeopardizes his general election chances in Florida, a state in which President Trump soundly crushed Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton in 2016’s presidential election. Nelson is likely to face Florida Gov. Rick Scott in the general election next year, and his silence on this matter is not helpful to his re-election chances. It provides Scott a giant bludgeon with which to beat him up on the campaign trail this year.



UPDATE 7:19 P.M.


Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) is facing even more criticism for her intransigence, and refusal to vote against a government shutdown.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) is flashing back to this 2013 tweet from Stabenow, where she criticized Republicans for a shutdown:

If Stabenow votes against cloture at 10 p.m. tonight on the government funding bill passed by the House, she is responsible for exactly what she accused Republicans of in 2013–and she is personally responsible for the government shutdown that results.



UPDATE 7:14 P.M.


White House principal deputy press secretary Raj Shah, on CNN, notes that the Democrat intransigence against this legislation is unexplainable and unacceptable. Shah notes that this exact bill would get wide support from all the Democrat senators if Barack Obama was still president, and that Obama would sign it. The only reason why any Democrats are still holding out, Shah said, is because they “hate” Donald Trump, the duly elected President of the United States of America.


“These are measures that they [Democrats] would support as standalones,” Shah said, adding that the Democrats’ feckless attempts to add “amnesty for illegal aliens” into the government funding debate is creating “chaos” just like Schumer said in 2013 it would.
The clock is ticking. It remains to be seen whether Democrats will shut down the government.



UPDATE 7:10 P.M.


The U.S. Senate has scheduled the vote for 10 P.M. ET.

UPDATE 6:48 P.M.


There are 51 yes votes now in the U.S. Senate for the House-passed government funding bill. Sens. Rand Paul (R-KY) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC) intend to vote against it, they say now, and Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) is in Arizona right now amid health issues related to his recent diagnosis of brain cancer. But even without Paul and Graham and McCain, Republicans have 48 likely yes votes (depending on where Jeff Flake is–which is still up in the air). Add in the now three public Democrat yes votes, Sens. Joe Manchin (D-WV), Joe Donnelly (D-IN), and Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) with the 48 other Republicans and there are 51 votes for the legislation. Vice President Mike Pence would be vote 52, which means all the United States government needs is eight more Democrats to come out for the legislation.
What all of this means, of course, is that if the Senate Democrats do not end up voting en masse for the bipartisan House-passed government funding bill then the Democrats are personally responsible for shutting the government down over something as unpopular as amnesty for illegal aliens.



UPDATE 6:40 P.M.


Now that three Senate Democrats–Sens. Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND), Joe Manchin (D-WV), and Joe Donnelly (D-IN)–are on board with the bipartisan House-passed plan to keep the government open, pressure is ramping up nationwide on obstructionist Democrats party-wide.

Even Senators from far-flung states like Washington State, where Democratic Sens. Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell represent, are under fire from their state GOP to side with the growing group of bipartisan lawmakers and vote against a government shutdown along bipartisan lines. It would be politically disastrous for any Democrat in the Senate to vote against this bill when Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell brings it up for a cloture vote on Friday evening.

NEW POLL: Majority of Americans say funding a budget and avoiding a #SchumerShutdown is more important than DACA. @PattyMurray and @SenatorCantwell — please listen to the people! https://t.co/6mKGiSlUMT
— Washington State GOP (@WAGOP) January 19, 2018

UPDATE 6:35 P.M.


Another Democrat just broke with Chuck Schumer, and announced her intention to vote for the bipartisan House-passed spending bill.

Sen. Heiti Heitkamp (D-ND), a vulnerable Democrat up for re-election in 2018, announcing her intention to vote for the bill is a horrendous sign for Schumer amid his efforts to try to hold the line against the bill. This imperils Democrats even more, and makes it even harder for people like Sens. Claire McCaskill (D-MO), Jon Tester (D-MT), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Doug Jones (D-AL), and more to vote to shut down the federal government on Friday night. Schumer’s wall is crumbling.


UPDATE 6:30 P.M.


Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) drops the hammer on Chuck Schumer in a series of vicious tweets detailing how the Democrats would be personally responsible for anything that happens as a result of a potential looming government shutdown.


UPDATE 6:24 P.M.


Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), a leftist Democrat who represents a state that President Trump won in 2016 against Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton, is facing serious criticism back home in Michigan for her announced intention to vote against the House-passed government funding bill that would keep the government open.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is having serious problems holding his conference together on this vote.

And again, if Stabenow does end up voting to shut down the federal government late Friday, she is likely to face serious consequences from Michiganders in a state where she was expected previously to have no problems electorally before now.


UPDATE 6:13 P.M.


The silence of Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO) is deafening, as her likely general election opponent in 2018’s midterm elections Missouri Attorney General Josh Hawley–a conservative Republican–hammers away at her:

It remains to be seen if McCaskill will vote to shut down the government, or if she will vote alongside her Democrat colleagues Joe Donnelly and Joe Manchin–along with six House Democrats–for the House-passed government funding bill.


UPDATE 6:11 P.M.


President Trump and Speaker Ryan reportedly spoke recently about potential other options than the House-passed bill:

But Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn says to expect a likely vote on the House-passed bill:

So does the White House’s Marc Short:

Meanwhile, Jeff Flake–a vehemently anti-Trump outgoing senator who was reportedly against the House-passed bill–is now apparently open to it as at least two Democrats, Joe Manchin and Joe Donnelly, are now in favor of it:

UPDATE 5:29 P.M.


Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer have not spoken all day Friday ahead of the all important vote to keep the government open.


UPDATE 5:24 P.M.


President Trump just tweeted this:

But on CNN right now, OMB director Mick Mulvaney says “not much changed throughout the day” and that the Senate is moving forward with a cloture vote soon to pass the House-passed government funding bill.


Mulvaney adds the “only way to avoid” any government shutdown is for the Senate to pass the House-passed government funding bill. The Senate could pass that right now, if Democrats vote for a bill that contains nothing they oppose.


UPDATE 5:22 P.M.


Up in Pennsylvania, Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA)–another Democrat facing a tough re-election in a state President Trump won in 2016–is under serious fire for dishonest comments he made about a looming government shutdown the Democrats are aiming to cause.

Casey is attempting to put pressure on Republicans here, but it is Democrats like him–and his leader, Chuck Schumer–who hold the power to keep the government open.


There are countless more absurd tweets from Casey on his Twitter account. But his inaccurate comments are not going unchecked. Now, Rep. Lou Barletta (R-PA)–a pro-Trump Republican congressman from Central Pennsylvania–is stepping forward to call out his hypocrisy.

“I’m sure Senator Casey knows that Senate rules require 60 votes to pass spending legislation,” Barletta said in a statement released Friday afternoon. “Republicans only hold 51 seats in the Senate. It is impossible to get to 60 without Democrat support. Republicans passed a Continuing Resolution through the House without needing Democratic support, but that can’t happen in the Senate. If at least 10 Democrats don’t come to the table, then those Senators who vote no will be solely responsible for shutting down the government. If Bob Casey votes to shut down the government, Casey will be denying health insurance for more than 342,268 children to protect 4,900 illegal immigrants in Pennsylvania. Pennsylvanians should be furious.”
If Casey moves forward with his plan to vote against the House-passed government funding bill–which contains nothing he or other Democrats oppose–and for a government shutdown, Casey will likely face serious consequences on the campaign trail in 2018.


UPDATE 5:16 P.M.


Democrats’ electoral advantage nationwide, as their party aims to send America into chaos with a government shutdown, is slipping dramatically already.

The Democrats may be seriously overplaying their hands here, right into GOP efforts–and efforts by President Trump–to hold the GOP majority in the House of Representatives in November’s midterm elections. After gubernatorial election wins in November in New Jersey and Virginia, and a shocking special election senatorial victory in Alabama as well as a statehouse election victory in Wisconsin, Democrats looked poised for a big 2018. But Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s actions here–as well as those of House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and other top Democrats–are jeopardizing Democrats’ chances in 2018 in November at the polls.


UPDATE 5:11 P.M.


Now reports are emerging that the red state Democrats in tough re-election battles are struggling so badly with their party’s responsibility for a looming government shutdown that they are working to withhold pay for Congress during a shutdown:




UPDATE 5:08 P.M.


Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT), a red state Democrat up for re-election in 2018 in a state President Trump won big time over Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton, is under serious fire back home in Montana for his stated plans to vote against the bipartisan House-passed government funding bill. Matt Rosendale, the leading GOP candidate for U.S. Senate in Montana who is likely to face Tester in the November general election, is now slamming Tester for his plans to vote for a government shutdown–something that will hurt Montanans.

“Jon Tester had a chance to work with President Trump to keep the government open and secure funding for the 44,000 Montana children who rely on CHIP. Instead, he will vote with Chuck Schumer and other liberal Democrats to shut down the government,” Rosendale told Breitbart News. “Senator Tester chose to play politics rather than work with President Trump to do what is right for our state. That’s not the Montana way. Our state deserves a senator who means business and won’t put up with these nonsense political games.”


UPDATE 4:55 P.M.


This thing could go down to the wire–or over the line past midnight, when current government funding runs out:
But there is a reported sense of calm in the Capitol before the storm:

Perhaps most importantly, new details are emerging from Schumer’s meeting with Trump at the White House that show how desperate the Democratic leader is before a looming government shutdown. Schumer, per Fox News’ John Roberts and Chad Pergram, apparently attempted to change the subject off DACA in his meeting with Trump to a number of other issues. That fact is evidence that the Democrats are aware of how unpopular their position really is, and how bad of a situation in which they find themselves:


UPDATE 4:51 P.M.


Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT) is severely jeopardizing his re-election chances, as CNN’s Manu Raju reports he supports voting against the House-passed government funding bill for a government shutdown.

Sens. Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) and Claire McCaskill (D-MO) are currently hiding, not saying where they stand. It remains to be seen if they will vote to shut down the government–and it remains to be seen if Tester will hold his position now that is abundantly clear the House bill has bipartisan support in both the House and the Senate. Six House Democrats voted for the House funding bill, and now two Senate Democrats–Sens. Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Joe Donnelly (D-IN)–openly support it. Schumer’s hold on his conference is slipping.

UPDATE 8:20 P.M.


The vote appears to be nowhere near a tie, as Vice President Mike Pence has departed for his trip to the Middle East just now.

Brian Bennett of the Los Angeles Times, the VP pooler, emailed to the press at 7:39 P.M. that the Vice President was taking off soon:
“Air Force Two is rolling on the tarmac at JBA at around 7:36 pm. The plane will land in Shannon, Ireland for a short refueling stop before heading on to Cairo.,” Bennett wrote. “Your pooler could see Vice President Pence standing in the middle of the center aisle and talking briefly to his staff at the front of the plane before it began moving. Our seats were too far away to hear what was said.”
It appears Pence does not believe he could break a tie in the Senate tonight. The vice president leaving the country amid a government shutdown, however, is maybe not the best optics. The president, Donald Trump, canceled a planned trip to Florida this weekend amid the Democratic Party-inspired chaos on Capitol Hill.


UPDATE 8:11 P.M.

Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-SC), a member of House Democratic leadership, confirms that the Democratic Party expects there to be a government shutdown tonight. Senate Democrats could vote against a government shutdown if they voted for the House-passed government funding bill.

UPDATE 8:08 P.M.

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) announces his intention, in an interview with CNN’s Anderson Cooper, his intention to vote for a government shutdown at 10 p.m. this evening. He plans to vote against the bipartisan House-passed government funding bill, which has nothing contained in it that he actually opposes. Sanders could vote for the bill to keep the government open, but he is refusing to do so.


UPDATE 7:54 P.M.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), a leading proponent of amnesty for illegal aliens who has seriously damaged his relationship with President Trump and the Republican Party throughout this process, is now getting angry with reporters in the Capitol screaming at them to “get out of my way!”

Angry Lindsey Graham apparently just got some food:

UPDATE 7:52 P.M.

Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn confirms that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has spiraled so far leftward in these negotiations into the realm of extreme–far outside the mainstream–that Schumer cannot find a way back to the highly reasonable positions that Republicans are offering.

Schumer, and his counterpart on the other side of Capitol Hill House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, have steered the Democratic Party into a ditch to begin 2018 when they could have started what was supposed to be a promising year off strong. The consequences for Democrats only continue to get worse as this debate rages onward, and Democrats cannot seem to find a way out.
UPDATE 7:49 P.M.
Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), a vulnerable Democrat up for re-election in Ohio–a state where President Trump trounced Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton in the 2016 election–announces his plans to vote for a government shutdown at 10 p.m. this evening when he is offered an opportunity to keep the government open by voting for cloture on the House-passed government funding bill.

While Republican Josh Mandel dropped out of the race against Brown recently, and J.D. Vance is not running against him, this could empower Rep. Jim Renacci (R-OH)–a likely candidate against Brown–if and when Brown votes for a government shutdown.

UPDATE 7:46 P.M.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) was just spotted walking into Chuck Schumer’s office:

Graham keeps undercutting President Trump and the Republican Party throughout this process:


UPDATE 7:45 P.M.

Sen. Pat Leahy (D-VT) is seemingly more concerned with “supper” than with voting to keep the government open.

Leahy is expected to, alongside Schumer and many other Senate Democrats, vote for a government shutdown by voting against cloture on the House-passed government funding bill tonight. If Leahy votes against cloture, he will be voting for a shutdown–and Republicans will surely mock him for some time in the future for being more concerned with “supper” than with troops getting paychecks.


UPDATE 7:41 P.M.

Sen. Doug Jones (D-AL) is under fire down in Alabama for refusing to publicly back the bipartisan House-passed government funding bill. For now, Jones appears to be–as he said he would not do during the special election in 2017–acting as Schumer’s puppet, enabling the Senate Democratic leader’s efforts to shut down the government.

Jones could prove his independence from Schumer right now by announcing his support for the bipartisan House-passed government funding bill, just like Democratic Sens. Joe Manchin, Joe Donnelly, and Heidi Heitkamp have.

UPDATE 7:35 P.M.

Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO) is coming under serious fire as well, as she continues to refuse to say whether she will vote for a government shutdown–or whether she will vote for cloture on the House-passed funding bill that has bipartisan support as well backing from several of her Senate colleagues. She keeps refusing to answer.

Lindsey Graham



@LindseyGrahamSC










Great to speak with these young people who will be #TRUMPDreamers. President Trump can help these young people who know no other home than the United States.#Dreamers #TRUMPDreamers

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5:13 PM · Jan 19, 2018
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From Jason Donner's (Fox News) twitter feed:

Sen Blumenthal (D-CT) says there was virtually a deal between Schumer & the president and the president walked away from it after he talked to his hard right. Blumenthal says Schumer will talk on the Senate floor about what the deal was.

7:09 PM - 19 Jan 2018