The Senate has just voted 81-18 to end debate on government funding, a procedural measure that clears the way to re-open the federal government.
New York Senator Chuck Schumer has announced an agreement with Mitch McConnell to end the government shut down for about 3 weeks, in exchange for an immigration bill to protect the 800,000 DACA recipients. Schumer had been previously been in negotiations with the President and Congress to protect the 800,000 “DACA children”, illegal immigrants brought to America as children and raised here having known no other country as home.
Government agencies and services not deemed “critical” have implemented their shut down plan, and their employees are staying home. In every government case in history, Congress has later approved paying them retroactively.
This morning, Trump has placed the blame squarely on Senator Chuck Schumer and the Democrats, labeling this the “Schumer Shutdown.” “Democrats have shut down our government in the interests of their far left base. They don’t want to do it but are powerless!” he tweeted.
This is not the end, though. In three weeks, we may see yet another shutdown.
Author’s note: Schumer has done a number of things for the Democrats with this maneuver. First, he has taken the focus away from President Trump’s accomplishments in his first year, which include a booming economy, progress with North Korea and much more.
Second, he has put the Democrats in the position of saying they fought for the DACA children. Even though, as we have said previously, the deal has been pretty much done, this helps to win the propaganda battle for the Democrats, maintaining the illusion that these people were about to be kicked out.