Nancy Pelosi tried to pull an end around on President Trump in what all serious observers called a cheap political stunt.
Enter Mitch McConnell who used the powers vested in him as Majority Leader of the US Seate to checkmate her. Better luck next time, Nancy.
Pelosi handed Mitch bills that would reopen the parts of the government not connected to the wall fight, trying to peel off some GOP Senators from Trump’s position.
Look, the GOP tried this same tactic with Obama during one of their shutdowns – pass bills we agree on and leave the fight to another day – but Obama knew that would destroy his leverage so he refused.
Pelosi is doing the same thing and Trump is refusing for the same reason, yet the media only complains about Trump and the GOP?
From CNN:
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell blocked a move by Senate Democrats on Thursday to get the chamber to vote on spending bills to reopen the government on day 20 of the ongoing partial shutdown.
In a back-and-forth on the Senate floor, Senate Democrats, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, on Thursday called for the Senate to take up legislation advanced by House Democrats to reopen shuttered parts of the federal government and argued that parts of the federal government not related to the border wall should be re-opened immediately as negotiations continue over the border wall, but Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell objected to the move, saying that “political stunts are not going to get us anywhere.”
“The last thing we need to do right now is trade pointless — absolutely pointless — show votes back and forth across the aisle,” McConnell said on the floor. He added, “The political stunts are not going to get us anywhere.”
McConnell instead blamed Democrats for the impasse, saying that the shutdown has been “prolonged by my Democratic colleagues’ refusal to even come to the table.”
From The Hill:
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Thursday blocked two House-passed funding bills that would reopen the federal government.
Sens. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Ben Cardin (D-Md.), surrounded by roughly two dozen of their Senate Democratic colleagues, tried to get consent to bring up a bill that would fund the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) through Feb. 8, as well as a separate package that would fund the remaining agencies without current-year appropriations through Sept. 30.
But McConnell objected, arguing they would be “show votes” and saying that he and Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) made an “explicit commitment” to avoid such votes.
