All signs point to the government shutting down at midnight Tuesday night.
Just when Monday’s meeting between President Donald Trump and congressional leaders brought a glimmer of a potential offramp — the president expressed openness to extending Obamacare credits, Democrats’ asking price — it was back to the status quo hours later. Trump posted a deepfake video Monday night of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer talking about why voters hate Democrats and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries in a sombrero and mustache, which Jeffries called bigoted.
Now, just 16 hours until the deadline, there’s no reason to expect a breakthrough. And leaders haven’t set a follow-up meeting on the impasse.
If there’s any reason for optimism out of Monday’s meeting, it was the discussion about extending Obamacare credits. However, Vice President JD Vance insisted those talks would need to happen in the “context of an open government,” stressing that a shutdown would impede them.
Trump’s willingness reflects the desire from some GOP members to prioritize the extension, but with some tweaks to make them more palatable to conservatives. Republicans have been calling for income caps on the subsidies and for potentially adding language restricting the tax credits from covering abortions.
While Democrats have stayed away from endorsing any modifications to the credits, the top Democrat on House Ways and Means, Rep. Richard Neal of Massachusetts, opened the door Monday to negotiating income limits.
“I think the question of subsidies for people that are making half a million dollars — I mean, that should be subject to a discussion and negotiation as well, but that shouldn’t become the pretense for shutting down the government,” Neal told POLITICO.
Any further talks about Obamacare, if they happen, will almost certainly happen with the government closed. And Trump’s inflammatory social media posts don’t bode well for potential negotiations.
“Bigotry will get you nowhere,” Jeffries posted on X in response to Trump’s video. “We are NOT backing down.”
The Senate will vote again on the House-passed stopgap and a Democratic proposal for a CR Tuesday; both are expected to fail again on largely party-line votes. Senate Majority Leader John Thune filed cloture to set up another vote on the GOP CR for Wednesday.
What else we’re watching:
— Dems’ shutdown messaging: Democrats plan to flood the zone Tuesday ahead of a near certain shutdown. House Democratic leaders will hold a press event at 10 a.m. on the Capitol steps. Tri-caucus chairs will host a press conference at 11 a.m. House Democrats will caucus around 12:15 p.m. Whip Katherine Clark will have a press conference at 2 p.m. House Democrats will also host a digital media row with former CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure.
— Will the NDAA cross the finish line?: Senate Armed Services Chair Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) is pleading with senators to finish work on the annual defense policy bill. But it could get sidelined if the government shuts down as expected. Rep. Adam Smith (Wash.), the top Democrat on House Armed Services, predicted the Senate probably won’t pass the House version of the NDAA.
Nicholas Wu, Mia McCarthy and Connor O’Brien contributed to this report.
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