Facing a dwindling timeline to fund the government, Republicans are expressing optimism that voters will blame Democrats for sparking a government shutdown.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is arguing that Republicans will shoulder the blame for a shutdown despite Democrats being dug in against a GOP spending bill to temporarily fund government operations. Republicans have countered that the House-passed stopgap spending measure is bipartisan and have pointed to recent polling showing that a majority of Americans oppose a shutdown.
“We have a bipartisan solution to keep the government open,” Republican Ohio Sen. Bernie Moreno told the Daily Caller News Foundation, referring to Democratic Maine Rep. Jared Golden and Democratic Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman bucking their party to support the GOP spending bill. “Democrats are trying to hold this ransom with $1.5 trillion in spending.”
“Evidently, they think it’s more important to give healthcare to illegals than to take care of our rural hospitals,” Moreno added. “If seven Democrats want to have a little bit of common sense, they can join us, keep the government open and we’ll negotiate with them.”
Most legislation, including government funding bills, need 60 votes to pass the Senate. Given Senate Republicans’ 53-47 majority, GOP leadership needs buy-in from a handful of Democrats to advance spending measures. The current impasse is all but certain to lead to shutdown when government funding expires on Wednesday at 12:01 a.m.
When asked whether he was worried that Republicans would take the blame for a shutdown, Republican Texas Sen. John Cornyn told the DCNF that he didn’t know “how that could possibly be the case” with a “clean” GOP spending bill having been voted down by the Democrats.
“I guess they can make something up and see if it sticks, but I don’t believe it,” Cornyn said.
Republican Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley similarly dismissed concerns that voters could pin the blame on Republicans.
“Thirteen times Democrats have voted for a clean CR [continuing resolution],” Grassley told the DCNF. “What’s different this time?”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has argued that Dems’ current opposition to a stopgap funding measure stems in part from their opposition to Trump’s policy agenda and the need to deal with various healthcare policy issues immediately.
However, 65% percent of Americans believe Democrats should not shut down the government even if “their demands are not met,” according to a New York Times/Siena University poll released Tuesday.
Additionally, a staggering 43% of Democrats told the pollster that members of their party should not shut down the government over their various policy demands.
Schumer dismissed the results of the poll on the Senate floor Tuesday, calling The New York Times “biased.”
“I don’t always believe The New York Times,” Schumer said while arguing that voters would blame Republicans for a government shutdown. “You can be sure of that.”
Senate Majority Leader John Thune invoked Schumer’s quick dismissal of survey in a speech following the lead Democrat’s remarks.
“This morning, the Democrat leader used one of my other charts. Thank you for doing that. It makes my point,” Thune said. “I’m guessing he may not want to use this one.”
Thune has argued that Democrats have no “substantive reason” to plunge the country into a government shutdown.
“This is totally avoidable. It is a decision they’re going to have to make, and if the government shuts down, it is on the Senate Democrats,” Thune said at a GOP leadership press conference on Tuesday. “The House has acted. The president’s ready to sign the bill, and all that’s left is for eight Democrats to join us in passing that bill today.”
Andi Shae Napier contributed to this report.
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