Trump twists the arm of democrats in closing the closure, freezing from New York metro projects and threatening thousands of layoffs

Only a few hours after the start of the closure, the Democratic leader of the Senate, Chuck Schumer, said that if the Republicans worked with them, “the closure could disappear very quickly.”

But it will not be easy. Republican leaders – Head of the majority of the Senate John Thune, Chamber of Chamber Mike Johnson and President Donald Trump – said they would not negotiate or not be “held hostage” by Democrats demanding concessions to reopen the government. The Bill that Democrats voted was a simple extension of funding for 45 days, the legislation which, according to them, should be not controversial.

Although this republican position without compromise does not last long – there were early informal talks on Wednesday in the Senate – concluding an agreement would be difficult. It is deeply uncertain, for the moment, if the two parties could find common ground on health care policy or sow enough confidence for Democrats to change their position.

At the same time, prolonged closure could be more and more painful for Democrats. The Trump administration has threatened to dismiss thousands of workers and target democratic states. On Wednesday, the White House announced that it was taking a grip on metro and tunnel projects in the original state of Schumer in New York.

“This democratic closure actually delays progress on the issues that Democrats claim to be interested,” Thune, which represents the southern Dakota, said on Wednesday.

Some flickering democrats emerge in the closure saga

The Republicans were encouraged on Tuesday evening when three Democrats voted with them to keep the government open – the democratic senses. John Fetterman from Pennsylvania and Catherine Cortez Masto from Nevada and independent Senator Angus King of Maine.

The Republicans, who hold the majority, need eight democrats to win the 60 votes necessary for the adoption in the Senate 53-47. The Kentucky Rand Paul senator was the only republican to vote with the Democrats against the measure.

Thune holds repeated votes on the measure, which failed Tuesday evening and failed Wednesday morning. He said that he hoped that five Democrats will eventually feel pressure and support the bill “when they realize that it plays a losing hand”.

The Republicans are considering several moderate democrats who seemed to vacillate before voting “no” on Tuesday evening, especially Sense. Jeanne Shaheen from New Hampshire and Gary Peters from Michigan. Both voted to keep the government opened in March, with Schumer, while many of their colleagues voted for a closure.

But Shaheen and Peters each voted on Tuesday after many negotiations with colleagues from both parties on the ground. Shaheen later said that “I had intensive conversations with colleagues on both sides of the aisle on how to find a way to follow and I can’t wait to work with my republican colleagues to find common ground.”

Democrats at a crossroads: dig or dig?

As some Democrats are already looking for a way out, others say they have to dig and fight.

“While Donald Trump’s anarchy increases during this closure, our thorns should stiffen, and not lean,” Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut said in an article on social networks on Wednesday. “Set something.” The American people do not want us to finance the destruction of their health care and the destruction of our democracy. ”

The Caucus divisions pose a dilemma for Schumer, which was exploded by basic voters and activists in March when he voted with the Republicans to keep the government open. Many Democrats in the House and the Senate have suggested that the government’s closure is their only lever effect to fight Trump and repel its policies, including health care and expense reductions.

“Standing to (Trump) on this subject also sends him a message on these other questions,” said Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn.

Health care policy

Democrats demanded that the Republicans immediately extend health care subsidies to people who buy coverage through the affordable care law markets. The enlarged subsidies implemented for the first time in 2021 during the COVVI-19 pandemic should expire at the end of the year, increasing the bonus costs of millions of people.

Many Republicans have said they were open to an extension, but they want to see changes. Other Republicans – especially in the House – see it as an unacceptable expansion of the health care law of President Barack Obama, which the Republicans have tried to eliminate or reduce since his promulgation 15 years ago.

Johnson did not engage in talks on the issue and said: “There must be a reform.”

Obamacare “is a defective system,” said Johnson on CNBC.

Thune has repeatedly said that the Republicans were ready to negotiate the issue once the government will reopen.

Despite this, some Republicans began informal talks with the Democrats in the Senate on Wednesday about potentially prolonging the enlarged subsidies for a year, then eliminating them. The idea floated by the Republican senator Mike Rounds of the South Dakota would probably be rejected by many Republicans, but the Democrats said that they were encouraged that the two parties were talking at all.

“At least, we are on the same wavelength to talk about the same problem,” said senator Peter Welch, D-Vt., After soil. “So I see it as progress, but it’s far from where we have to finish.”

Lessons from the past

Previous closures show that it is difficult to win major concessions by closing the government.

In 2018, the government closed its doors for three days as a Democrats, led by Schumer, insisted that any budgetary measure came with protections for young immigrants called “dreamers” as part of Obama’s delayed action program for children’s arrivals. They voted to reopen after the head of the majority of the time, Mitch McConnell, promised only a vote on the issue.

Later that year, Trump forced a closure on the financing of his border wall and withdrew after 35 days as delays in intensifying the country’s airports and missed pay days for hundreds of thousands of federal workers.

Senator Ted Cruz, R-Texas and the Republicans of the Chamber sparked a closure in 2013 against the Obama health care law. Bipartite negotiations in the Senate finally ended the closure after 16 days, and the Republicans did not win any major health care concessions.

“I don’t think the closures benefit anyone, above all, on all Americans,” said Thune.

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