‘I don’t see a deal’ to prevent government shutdown

Carlos Barria | Reuters

President Donald Trump speaks during an interview with Reuters in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, U.S., April 27, 2017.

President Donald Trump on Tuesday raised the prospect of a potentially disastrous government shutdown, saying he could not envision a fiscal deal with Democrats to avoid federal closure.

Meeting with “Chuck and Nancy” today about keeping government open and working. Problem is they want illegal immigrants flooding into our Country unchecked, are weak on Crime and want to substantially RAISE Taxes. I don’t see a deal!

Trump tweeted his remarks just hours before he was scheduled to meet with Democratic Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi in the Oval Office, along with the top Republican leaders, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Paul Ryan.

The purpose of the meeting is to begin urgent negotiations to pass a federal budget and spending plan before the government runs out of funding on Dec. 8. Republicans are insisting that as part of any deal, caps on military spending be lifted. Democrats are expected to use their leverage to demand policy protections for the so called immigration Dreamers and a reauthorization of the Children’s Health Insurance Program.

The trouble with Trump’s inability to see “a deal” is that Republicans cannot pass a federal spending bill without Democratic votes in the Senate, where a 60 vote majority will be needed to move the bill forward. In the House, Republicans have needed Democratic votes in recent years to pass spending bills, because the GOP caucus’ most conservative members have refused to support the bills.

This gives Democrats far greater leverage in these negotiations than they have on tax reform, for instance, where Republicans can pass a bill with a simple majority in the Senate and near unanimous support from House Republicans.

Even if a deal is reached at the 11th hour, the prospect of a government shutdown could rattle financial markets. In the event that a shutdown were to occur, the results would likely be disastrous for Republicans heading into the 2018 midterm elections.