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Cory Gardner and Michael Bennet vote yes to end government shutdown

January 23, 2018 20:28·
Mitch Mc Connell and Chuck Schumer haven't spoken personally since Friday. Yuri Gripas Reuters

Mitch Mc Connell and Chuck Schumer haven't spoken personally since Friday. Yuri Gripas Reuters

However, the Democrats claim that they are ready to compromise, and that it is Donald Trump's failure to do so that has brought the country to a standstill (the #TrumpShutdown). The legislation is expected to restore a programme for young immigrants brought to the U.S. illegally as children.

Senate Democrats had been pushing GOP lawmakers to restore the DACA program as part of a short-term spending bill, but after days of deadlocked negotiations, Democrats conceded to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's three-week funding proposal.

Trump quickly moved to undercut Democrats, saying he would only accept a comprehensive immigration reform - one that notably addresses his demands for a border wall with Mexico as well as the fate of the "Dreamers".

The Senate vote early on Monday will be on whether to advance a measure to fund the government through February 8, McConnell said on Saturday.

For one, it's the first time we've seen a shutdown where one party has controlled the House, the Senate, and the White House, and federal employees were furloughed - sent home without pay. Eighteen senators, including members of both parties, were opposed. As FiveThirtyEight's Harry Enten recently pointed out, Republicans pushed the most recent government shutdowns in the mid-1990s and in 2013, and while during both episodes Americans said that Republicans were more to blame than Democrats, electorally, it didn't ultimately mean much. It was read by spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders at a press briefing. It doesn't tie the immigration vote to another piece of legislation, a tactic often used to build momentum. "We expect that a bipartisan deal on DACA will receive fair consideration and an up-or-down vote on the floor", Schumer said. If it fails, it sounds like McConnell is going to stick this out for a while. "I'm looking for something that President Trump supports, and he has not yet indicated what measure he is willing to sign", he said. He was frustrated that Democrats had created "imaginary deadlines" for dealing with immigration, which is not a "do or die issue", he said.

Cristina Jimenez, executive director of United We Dream, said the members of the group are "outraged".

But the Republicans' plan was criticized by none other than their party leader, President Trump.

A block of liberal Democrats - some of them 2020 presidential hopefuls - stuck to their opposition. Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Dianne Feinstein of California, Kirsten Gillibrand of NY and Cory Booker of New Jersey voted no, as did Independent Bernie Sanders of Vermont. Trump may want to use the missing wall against Democrats in his re-election campaign.

"The Republican majority now has 17 days to prevent the Dreamers from being deported", Schumer said. It includes a six-year extension of funding for the Children's Health Insurance Program. But this shutdown really should be on them, and McConnell's move cuts some more ground out from under Schumer.

In fact, Trump, who regularly disrupted negotiations in recent weeks, had been a relatively subdued player in the weekend debate.

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And even if a deal could pass the Senate, immigration legislation has languished in the more conservative House. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and Dick Durbin, D-Ill., presented him a deal they brokered, but he rejected it.

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USA stocks advanced on Monday as each of Wall Street's main indexes touched a record intraday level after the shutdown deal. Trump has staked his political fortunes on taking a hard line on immigrants, painting them as criminals and scroungers.

"The Democrats are turning down services and security for citizens in favor of services and security for noncitizens".

"I have no idea what the end game is here", said the first aide.

Republicans have continued to reiterate that they will not negotiate on immigration and DACA while the government is shut down.

Trump has staked his political fortunes on taking a hard line on immigrants, painting them as criminals and scroungers.

Democrats say the decision to bow out now lets them fight another day and hopefully get things right this time. However, with that expiring in early March, Democrats, facing heavy pressure from immigration advocates, had pledged not to fund the government until a deal was reached.

Essential federal services and military activity are continuing, but even active-duty troops will not be paid until a deal is reached to reopen the USA government. He was one of many Republicans promising to make the impasse painful for Democrats.

Harris said she couldn't believe McConnell's promise, and didn't want to "put the lives of Dreamers "in the hands of someone who has repeatedly gone back on his word", she said in a statement".

While lawmakers feuded, signs of the shutdown were evident at national parks and in some federal agencies.

In terms of the actual impact of the government shutdown, the military and other uniformed federal services, including the Border Patrol, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and TSA baggage and passenger screeners at airports will report for duty, although paychecks will be held back until Congress approves retroactive payment, as it has in every previous federal shutdown.

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