News and updates

At a Rose Garden address this afternoon, President Trump announced that he has reached a deal with Congressional Democrats to reopen the government for three weeks, through February 15.  The three-week extension package does not include funding for a wall along the Southern border.  During his remarks, the president added that the federal workers who have not been paid as a result of the shutdown would receive back pay as soon as possible.  The two chambers still must pass, and the president must sign, legislation that would implement the provisions of the agreement reached today.

The three weeks, in theory, would buy some time for the various parties to negotiate on a path forward on the border wall and other potentially related matters.  However, there is no guarantee that an agreement will be reached by February 15.

Read more about this afternoon’s developments here, here, and here.

The partial shutdown is now in its 35th day.  Although the Senate defeated two proposals– the first two proposals that were voted on since the start of the shutdown– yesterday, the two parties have started talking about a path forward.  Read more about it here.

Immediately after the Senate votes, a small group of bipartisan Senators floated the idea of a three-week continuing resolution that would reopen the government temporarily and allow members to negotiate on border security.  That proposal was dismissed by the White House even before it was formally considered because it did not contain any  funding for a wall.  The House Democrats continue to object to funding a wall.

The Senate is scheduled to take up today two competing bills drafted to end the partial shutdown. Neither is expected to move forward.

The Republican measure follows the provisions outlined in President Trump’s remarks last weekend.  In addition to reopening the government, the bill also includes, among other provisions: $5.7 billion for a physical barrier; a three-year extension of protected status for 700,000 individuals currently in DACA; and a short-term extension for those currently Temporary Protected Status.  It would also make changes to the asylum process.

The Democrats’ counter-offer would reopen the government on a short-term basis through February 8, with no new funds for a border wall.  It also includes additional disaster funds and language that puts restrictions on how border security funds could be used.

With the current 53-47 make-up of the Senate, and because 60 votes would be needed to cut off debate and bring either measure to a vote, neither bill is expected to move forward in the process.  However, the votes today represent the first floor action in the Senate of any kind related to the reopening of the government since before the holidays.

While the action in the Senate has been non-existent with respect to the shutdown, the House has been busy taking up and passing a host of bills to reopen the government.  None of the bills in the House has included funding for a border wall called for by the President.  The House action up to now has included passing individual bills as well as bundling them into a package.

Not surprisingly, the House action has not translated into Senate passage of any of the measures.