Why Dems Are Facing Fallout From Temporary Shutdown
Senate Democrats are trying to hit the reset button after the shutdown defeat. Immigration reform is at the top of their mind's as they are looking to reach a deal before the February budget deadline. Ben Kamisar, Reporter at The Hill, explains what this means when looking forward to the 2018 midterms.
"They look at this and say 'we shut down the government for what?'" explains Kamisar. "That anger is one of the reasons why you are seeing these Senators who might be looking at 2020 bids for president themselves not ruling out shutdown negotiations either to try to exact some type of more lofty goals during the next fight."
On Wednesday White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said the White House is sending an immigration framework to Congress. On whether this is an initiative by the Trump administration to get the ball rolling on immigration reform, Kamisar says much of this framework are nonstarters for Dems to get their votes on board. But the real question is what both sides can agree on regarding DACA.
With a government shutdown five days away, Congress is moving into crisis mode as Speaker Kevin McCarthy faces an insurgency from hard-right Republicans eager to slash spending even if it means curtailing federal services for millions of Americans.
Rep. Andy Kim of New Jersey announced on Saturday that he will run against Sen. Robert Menendez in the state’s Democratic primary for Senate next year, saying he feels compelled to run against the three-term senator after he and his wife were indicted on sweeping corruption charges.