Democrats skip Trump meeting, raising risk of government shutdown

[webfact]

Democrats skip Trump meeting, raising risk of government shutdown

By Steve Holland

 

U.S. President Donald Trump, flanked by an empty chair marked for House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), who chose not to meet with Trump, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI), speaks with reporters at the White House in Washington, U.S. November 28, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democratic leaders in Congress skipped a meeting with President Donald Trump on Tuesday that was to have focused on the budget, raising the risk of a government shutdown next month with both sides far apart on the terms of an agreement.

 

After Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi informed Trump they would not attend the meeting at the White House, the president and Republican congressional leaders went ahead with the talks without them.

 

Trump left empty seats on either side of him, with name cards for Schumer, the Senate Democratic leader, and Pelosi, the top Democrat in the House of Representatives. He also criticized them as the cameras rolled during a picture-taking session.

 

"We have a lot of differences," Trump said. "So they've decided not to show up. They've been all talk and they've been no action and now it's even worse. Now it's not even talk."

 

Schumer and Pelosi said they pulled out of the meeting because of a tweet Trump sent earlier in the day attacking them as weak on illegal immigration and bent on raising taxes.

 

"I don't see a deal!" the Republican president wrote on Twitter.

 

Pelosi tweeted after Trump's White House session that "his empty chair photo opp showed he’s more interested in stunts than in addressing the needs of the American people. Poor Ryan and McConnell relegated to props. Sad!" she added, referring to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Paul Ryan,

 

Trump said he would "absolutely blame the Democrats" if a government shutdown takes place.

 

A Dec. 8 deadline is looming for passing a spending measure needed to fund a wide range of federal government programs.Although Republicans control both chambers of the U.S. Congress, their leaders will likely need to rely on at least some Democratic votes to pass the measure.

 

Democrats have said they will demand help for the "Dreamers" - young people brought to the United States illegally as children - as part of their price for providing votes on the budget measure.

 

But Trump said in a tweet late on Tuesday: "I ran on stopping illegal immigration and won big. They can't now threaten a shutdown to get their demands."

 

Congress has three choices: approve a massive bill for more than $1 trillion to keep the government operating through Sept. 30, 2018; pass a shorter extension of current funding to buy more time; or fail to pass anything and risk a partial government shutdown.

 

On Capitol Hill, Schumer said he and Pelosi believed the best path forward would be to negotiate with Republican leaders in Congress instead of going to the White House for a "show meeting."

 

(Reporting by Steve Holland; Editing by Peter Cooney)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2017-11-29

[Opl]

https://twitter.com/jeneps/status/935622386535354368/photo/1

 

[Emster23]

Trump barely considers democrats Americans. Where were Republicans when cooking up any bill asking for Democrat input? He is in trouble now with that wholesale looting and give to the rich tax "reform" bill. Wouldn't touch it with a ten foot poll...

[zydeco]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

Democrats have said they will demand help for the "Dreamers" - young people brought to the United States illegally as children - as part of their price for providing votes on the budget measure.

If the Democrats think that they can hold American citizens hostage in order to give illegal aliens an amnesty, then they are going to be destroyed at the next election.

Edited November 29, 2017 by zydeco

[timendres]

Shut that government down. It is time for the sleepers to wake up.

[Jingthing]

trump isn't as good a negotiator as he thinks he is. But he's a world class TROLL, that's for sure!

[Samui Bodoh]

5 hours ago, webfact said:

Although Republicans control both chambers of the U.S. Congress, their leaders will likely need to rely on at least some Democratic votes to pass the measure.

"Although republicans control both chambers of the US congress, their leaders will likely need to rely on a least some Democratic votes to pass the measure."

 

Sooooo, Trump and the Republicans control the White House and both houses of Congress and cannot pass a budget measure?

 

Tremendous! Gee, What a GREAT negotiator! What a TRUE deal-maker.

 

Way to go, Donnie! The American people gave you the keys to the castle, but you locked yourself out.

 

[spidermike007]

He knew there was an important upcoming meeting with the democrats. Yet, this man child could not control himself long enough, to not cause offense. He just cannot help himself. That is who he is. Everything about him is offensive, from his speech, to his body odor, the sulphur that drips out of his ears, and the infantile tweets. There are heroin addicts, that are considerably less addicted to heroin, than this infant is to twitter.

 

To label this man a hateful, misogynist, racist, undignified goon, would be an insult to the hate mongers of the world.

 

All one can say, is that he gets exactly what he deserves, when he shoots himself in the foot daily, insults Native American heroes by using insulting terms (even though he himself was too cowardly to serve his country, when he was asked, and showed a pathological fear of service, by getting five deferments), and hurls insults and creates chaos wherever he goes. what a goombah. What a goon. What a child. For some reason, with this clown, emotional development never took place.

Edited November 29, 2017 by spidermike007

[Basil B]

2 hours ago, zydeco said:

If the Democrats think that they can hold American citizens hostage in order to give illegal aliens an amnesty, then they are going to be destroyed at the next election.

One thing me and you can agree on is American Elections for the next few decades are going to be a one party race.

 

Where I think we differ is I am sure the Americans will not forget it was the Republicans who put him in the White House and all the damage he did.

[Sir Swagman]

Perhaps if he employed an 'arrested developmental' 5 year old to advise him on presidential behaviour, things might go a bit more smoothly? 

I bet there is a secret supermarket aisle they 

have constructed somewhere in the White House so he can set the scene and have a heel-kicking-lie-on-the-floor tantrum each day.

[whatsupdoc]

So before a meeting you criticize the others and tell them a deal is unlikely.... Did that guy really write a bestseller on how to make deals?????

[dunroaming]

14 minutes ago, whatsupdoc said:

So before a meeting you criticize the others and tell them a deal is unlikely.... Did that guy really write a bestseller on how to make deals?????

No someone else wrote it.

 

I have run out of expletives for Trump.  At least he never fails to illustrate what a complete moron he is.

[ilostmypassword]

The thing is how can it hurt to go to a meeting. But not going can hurt since Trump will purvey it as the Democrats being unwilling to help. It's may seem that you would have to be really ignorant to accept this version of events but you have to remember that Trump supporters still believe that Trump is trying to drain the swamp Even after he just claimed that Wall Street was being hurt by too much regulations. The people who brought us The Great Recession are really the victims! So that is the kind of ignorance Democrats are up against.

[ToS2014]

15 hours ago, Samui Bodoh said:

"Although republicans control both chambers of the US congress, their leaders will likely need to rely on a least some Democratic votes to pass the measure."

 

Sooooo, Trump and the Republicans control the White House and both houses of Congress and cannot pass a budget measure?

 

Tremendous! Gee, What a GREAT negotiator! What a TRUE deal-maker.

 

Way to go, Donnie! The American people gave you the keys to the castle, but you locked yourself out.

 

And the Dems controlled all branches of power and all we got was the ACA....aka Obama Care....BECAUSE (some) Americans didn't have it and/or couldn't afford it.  Years down the line and all we got is higher premiums and the '.....and you can keep your doctor....'  It's all nonsense; if you remove the blinders you will see it's monkey see, monkey do by BOTH parties. 

[Bundooman]

On 11/29/2017 at 4:04 PM, spidermike007 said:

He knew there was an important upcoming meeting with the democrats. Yet, this man child could not control himself long enough, to not cause offense. He just cannot help himself. That is who he is. Everything about him is offensive, from his speech, to his body odor, the sulphur that drips out of his ears, and the infantile tweets. There are heroin addicts, that are considerably less addicted to heroin, than this infant is to twitter.

 

To label this man a hateful, misogynist, racist, undignified goon, would be an insult to the hate mongers of the world.

 

All one can say, is that he gets exactly what he deserves, when he shoots himself in the foot daily, insults Native American heroes by using insulting terms (even though he himself was too cowardly to serve his country, when he was asked, and showed a pathological fear of service, by getting five deferments), and hurls insults and creates chaos wherever he goes. what a goombah. What a goon. What a child. For some reason, with this clown, emotional development never took place.

May I just say that you have expressed exactly what I also think about this clown! Articulately put - excellent appraisal!

[Opl]

"Trump Likely Benefits from Tax Bills. The House bill would repeal the estate tax entirely in 2024. As we’ve written before, that would save Trump’s estate $564 million, according to a Bloomberg estimate, based on a net worth of $3 billion. Trump has said his net worth is $10 billion, and if so, the savings to his estate from a repeal of the tax would be $1.9 billion."

http://www.factcheck.org/2017/11/trump-likely-benefits-tax-bills/