House Democrats trumpeted unity at their annual retreat only to be blindsided by their Senate counterparts who gave critical votes to pass a Republican spending bill.
SCOTT SIMON, HOST:
The federal government remains open today after Congress passed a stopgap funding bill hours before a midnight deadline. The bill includes a small increase in defense spending and about $13 billion in cuts to non-defense programs in keeping with Republican promises to cut domestic spending. Republicans got more than the eight Democratic votes they needed in the Senate to advance the bill, much to the dismay and fury of a number of other congressional Democrats. NPR congressional correspondent Barbara Sprunt joins us. Barbara, thanks for being with us.
BARBARA SPRUNT, BYLINE: Hey. Thanks for having me.
SIMON: This was an abrupt shift from the minority leader, Chuck Schumer. What happened?
SPRUNT: That’s right. Schumer had said Republicans didn’t get input from Democrats when drafting this bill, and so they wouldn’t get the Democratic votes they’d need to advance it. Instead, he wanted to pass a one-month funding bill to give them more time to negotiate a deal. But on Thursday, he made a U-turn, and he said he was going to vote to advance the bill. Schumer and the nine other Democrats who ultimately voted alongside him, argued the bill was bad, yes, but a government shutdown would be worse. They said it would enable President Trump and his top adviser Elon Musk to further gut federal agencies. And their support enabled Republicans to ultimately pass the bill largely along party lines.
SIMON: Barbara, would it be fair to say that Senator Schumer’s colleagues just didn’t see this coming?
SPRUNT: It would be fair. I was at a conference in Virginia with House Democrats when Schumer made this announcement. I saw jaws drop. I saw heads shake. Members were really upset. They said they felt betrayed because they had voted on this same bill earlier this week, and all but one voted against it. It was a tough vote for a lot of members, particularly those in vulnerable districts, but the caucus banded together to present a united front and make a strong show of opposition. They said that the bill was essentially a blank check for Trump because it doesn’t rein in the administration’s efforts to cut spending that was previously approved by Congress.
Here’s New York Congressman Joe Morelle reacting to Schumer’s comments.
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JOE MORELLE: And I think they’re going to rue the day they make this decision. I think this just gives, you know, license to Republicans to continue to dismantle the government. They now have the acquiescence of Senate Democrats.
SPRUNT: Members told me they were calling and texting their senators, imploring them not to vote alongside Schumer, so a lot of frustration and anger among House Democrats.
SIMON: And Barbara, what’s the implication of this rift among Democrats at a time when, after all, Republicans control the House, the Senate and the White House?
SPRUNT: House Democrats felt that they finally had some momentum, you know, as the opposition party. The vote over the shutdown was a rare and big piece of leverage for them. To have unity in the House and then have the Senate Democrats shift course at this late stage is a breakdown in strategy. And New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said that it has implications, in her view, far beyond this one vote.
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ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ: There will be a day where the Senate will need the House to move on something, and if there is an erosion of trust and a breach of trust, such as what is being considered right now, it will make cooperation difficult.
SPRUNT: After the vote, she posted that the Democratic votes in the Senate were a, quote, “fear-based, inexplicable abdication,” and that the Senate owns what happens next.
You know, I talked to Democratic strategists about this yesterday, and they said that Senate leadership really misread what constituents want – for Democrats to hold the line, even if it means a shutdown. There’s concern that this emboldens the GOP, makes it harder for Democrats to present a unified message. Now, Congress is on recess next week. I expect Democrats will be getting an earful from constituents.
SIMON: NPR’s Barbara Sprunt, thanks so much.
SPRUNT: Thank you.
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