{"id":6026,"date":"2025-02-11T13:03:56","date_gmt":"2025-02-11T13:03:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/capitol-agenda-johnsons-new-budget-plan-dems-shutdown-dilemma\/"},"modified":"2025-02-11T13:03:56","modified_gmt":"2025-02-11T13:03:56","slug":"capitol-agenda-johnsons-new-budget-plan-dems-shutdown-dilemma","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/capitol-agenda-johnsons-new-budget-plan-dems-shutdown-dilemma\/","title":{"rendered":"Capitol agenda: Johnson’s new budget plan, Dems’ shutdown dilemma"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The Democratic Party’s base is demanding that lawmakers do more to counter Donald Trump. But Democrats are signaling they don\u2019t want to use their major leverage point \u2014 forcing a government shutdown if the GOP refuses to rein in the president\u2019s war on the federal government.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy folks don’t want to shut down,\u201d said Rep. Sanford Bishop, a senior appropriator.<\/p>\n

Sen. Richard Blumenthal insisted his party needed to \u201cuse whatever levers and points of power we have\u201d to extract concessions from the Trump administration. But he added: \u201cI don’t think we should seek a shutdown.\u201d<\/p>\n

A spending bill to avert a government shutdown by the March 14 deadline is the one, must-pass piece of legislation that Republicans need Democrats\u2019 help to get over the finish line in the immediate future. Democrats can promise to hold Trump and the GOP accountable through investigations, protests and messaging bills, but none of those things have much bite in the minority.<\/p>\n

Still, triggering a shutdown is a tricky card to play<\/a>: You can\u2019t win a shutdown fight if you\u2019re taking the political blame for the shutdown.<\/p>\n

At least one Democrat is opening that door: First-term Sen. Andy Kim said Democrats may be willing to shut down the government<\/u><\/a> over what he called Trump\u2019s \u201clawlessness\u201d during an interview with NBC\u2019s Meet the Press on Sunday.<\/p>\n

But Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer didn\u2019t lean in that much in a subsequent letter to his colleagues<\/u><\/a> Monday morning, saying Republicans would need to work with Democrats to avoid a \u201cTrump shutdown.\u201d Democrats haven\u2019t publicly indicated specific policy concessions they want in return for help passing spending bills, besides mandating no more federal funding freezes.<\/p>\n

Rep. Jim McGovern, the top Democrat on the Rules Committee, said Monday evening, \u201cwe don\u2019t want to see the government shut down.\u201d But if Republicans don\u2019t want to work with Democrats on a bipartisan federal spending deal, \u201cthey\u2019re on their own.\u201d<\/p>\n

What else we\u2019re watching:<\/b><\/p>\n