Trump and Democrats meet as government shutdown approaches

Democratic congressional leaders head to the White House on Monday with little incentive—or time—for either side to reach a deal avoiding a government shutdown, less than 48 hours before federal funding lapses and agencies partially close.

President Trump agreed to the meeting over the weekend after canceling an earlier planned sit-down, but the White House and congressional Republicans signaled little changes in their stances, and have strong political reasons not to give ground.

Speaker Mike Johnson told House Republicans on a conference call Monday that they need to stick together to force Senate Democrats to swallow the seven-week stopgap bill the House passed last week, according three people granted anonymity to describe the private call.

The House was already set to be out of session this week, in part because of the Yom Kippur holiday. But Johnson has been entertaining whether to keep the lawmakers away longer to bring more pressure to bear on the Senate.

Democratic senators on the other hand increasingly see shutting down the government to send a message to President Trump as a political necessity, Democratic aides and strategists say.

These frustrated Democrats think they need to do something drastic to push back on the Trump administration and buck up their own demoralized voters — and the looming Sept. 30 government funding deadline may be one of their best remaining chances.

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) thinks the hard-line Democratic strategy is starting to pay off after Trump agreed to meet with Democratic leaders at the White House on Monday, something the president had previously refused to do.

A group of centrist Democratic senators, however, are leery about their leadership’s bare-knuckled approach to this week’s funding deadline. One of them, Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), has quietly put out feelers to their Republican colleagues in hopes of finding some off-ramp from the government funding stalemate.

Centrist Democrats who want to avoid a crippling government shutdown Oct. 1 hope that if Republicans give them good-faith assurances to negotiate an extension of the subsides this fall, it would open the door to a group of them voting for a Republican-drafted seven-week spending bill.

Senator Susan Collins (Maine), a prominent centrist Republican who supports extending the health insurance premium subsidies, has talked to colleagues in both parties over the past week.

But the lack of negotiations among Trump and Republicans and Democratic leaders on a potential funding deal is a “big holdup,” according to one person familiar with the state of play.

Senator Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), another key GOP centrist, has proposed a framework for avoiding a shutdown that includes extending the enhanced premium tax credits for one year.

Her plan would also address the Office of Management and Budget’s proposed pocket rescission — something Democrats want to tackle head-on — by extending the availability of the funds targeted by the office’s director, Russell Vought.

Senate Republicans control 53 seats and they would need at least eight Democratic votes to avoid a shutdown; Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said he will vote against the funding measure because it prolongs Biden-era spending levels.

Possible and realized government shutdowns are not a new phenomenon, but it is something that President Trump would like to avoid.