Politics

Democrats Threaten Government Shutdown Over Border Wall

REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez

Kerry Picket Political Reporter
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Senate Democrats cautioned Monday that any attempt to not fund Planned Parenthood or fund a border wall would result in a shutdown of the government.

The move by Democrats sets up a potential battle between the White House and members in Congress who oppose President Trump’s border security plan and hope to torpedo it.

“If Republicans insist on inserting poison pill riders such as defunding Planned Parenthood, building a border wall, or starting a deportation force, they will be shutting down the government and delivering a severe blow to our economy,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement.

While Trump used the power of the pen to roll back Executive Orders signed by President Barack Obama and only needed a simple majority to approve his cabinet nominations, bills coming down the pipeline are another story.

“You know as well as I do the threshold for legislation is not 51,” South Carolina Republican Sen. Tim Scott told Bloomberg News Monday, implying that all 52 Senate Republicans will need to find eight Democrats to cross the aisle to move any legislation forward for a final vote.

However, Trump and Senate Republicans can play the game as well. One source familiar with the administration’s plans told Axios last Monday that Republicans could also attach the wall funding to the bill that funds the military.

If Democrats block money for the border wall, they would also block money for the troops, and the fact alone could be turned into campaign ads in 2018 in states that Trump won.

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