By Natalie Andrews, Kristina Peterson and Siobhan Hughes
WASHINGTON -- Lawmakers on Monday entered the third day of the
government shutdown planning a noon vote in the Senate to break the
impasse, in an effort to prevent it from hardening into a prolonged
standoff that would become increasingly difficult to resolve.
Republicans have proposed a bill that would reopen the
government for three weeks, but Democrats haven't agreed to that
without a path forward for legislation that would protect the
so-called "Dreamers," young undocumented immigrants brought to the
U.S. illegally as children. The Senate is expected to take a
procedural vote on the three-week bill at noon on Monday, but it is
unclear if Republican leaders will line up the 60 votes they need
to clear procedural hurdles and pass the spending bill.
A group of centrist senators from both parties met earlier
Monday ahead of the vote, in an attempt to chart a way out of the
stalemate. The group of more than 20 senators met over the weekend.
Sen. Chris Coons (D., Del.) said he wanted those centrist
Republicans to push Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R.,
Ky.) to an immigration debate.
Mr. McConnell took to the Senate floor on Monday morning to urge
senators around the track, using language that bore little
resemblance to his partisan rhetoric of recent days. The Kentucky
Republican didn't accuse Democrats of shutting down the government
over the issue of illegal immigration, a charge he had leveled in
previous days, and said that he respected the "passion" that both
parties brought to the immigration debate and other talks. He also
urged senators to listen to their better angels and repeated his
offer to move to immigration legislation.
"We should not let the political feuds or policy disagreements
obscure the simple fact that every member of this body cares deeply
about the challenges facing our country," Mr. McConnell said. "All
of us want to make life better for the American people."
Democrats were weighing whether they could trust the offer that
Mr. McConnell detailed on Monday morning, which reiterated
statements he had made the night before. Mr. McConnell stated his
willingness to move measures to help the Dreamers, as well as
border security and military spending, though he never used the
words "I promise" or "I will." Still, the change in tone and the
increased specificity had started to produce a shift in the
Senate.
"I thought his statement was very helpful," said Sen. Angus King
(I., Vt.), who caucuses with the Democrats and who last week voted
to block a spending bill. "We didn't hear the term illegal
immigration, for one thing... I'm going to sort of digest it, but
I'm encouraged."
The Democrats, who control enough votes in the Senate to block
legislation funding the government, want to use their leverage to
force an agreement to shield the Dreamers from deportation and
extend them a path to citizenship. The Dreamers' legal protections
expire March 5. In September, President Donald Trump decided to end
the Obama-era program protecting them called Deferred Action for
Childhood Arrivals but said he was giving Congress time to enact it
into law.
Mr. Trump has expressed desire to protect the young immigrants,
but wants additional immigration measures as part of any deal,
beyond funding for the border wall he campaigned on. Senate
Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.) said he made significant
concessions to Mr. Trump on Friday, including offering funding to
build a wall along the border, but the president rejected it.
"The president must take yes for an answer," Mr. Schumer said on
the Senate floor on Sunday, urging Republicans to find a compromise
with Democrats. "A party that controls the House, the Senate and
the presidency would rather sit back and point fingers of blame
than roll up their sleeves and govern."
The White House disputed Mr. Schumer's account.
Pressure is mounting on both parties, as the workweek begins and
more Americans feel the effects of the shutdown, including
potential furloughs for tens of thousands of federal employees. Mr.
Trump blamed the closure of government offices on Democrats on
Monday morning.
"The Democrats are turning down services and security for
citizens in favor of services and security for non-citizens," Mr.
Trump tweeted. "Not good!"
Without an agreement or path forward, the blame game that
Democrats and Republicans carried on all weekend was likely to
intensify, lawmakers said.
"I am really worried about where this thing goes because it's
going to get nastier in terms of rhetoric," said Sen. Lindsey
Graham (R., S.C.), predicting it would hit both parties. "First
prize in a government shutdown is you get to be dumb, not dumber.
That's the best you can hope for."
On Sunday, much of the Senate activity centered on the
bipartisan group of senators working to come up with a compromise.
Mr. Graham said Mr. McConnell had made clear that immigration would
be among the issues they would consider when the government is
reopened. But Mr. Graham said he was hoping to get a pledge from
Mr. McConnell that he would bring an immigration bill to the Senate
floor in early February, if the issue hasn't already been
resolved.
"Then we have to have in our own mind some way to assure that
the House feels the need to bring up the issue as well," said Sen.
Dick Durbin (D., Ill.).
Mr. McConnell spoke with Mr. Schumer off the Senate floor late
Sunday afternoon and aides expected them to continue
discussions.
Mr. McConnell had previously said he would bring up immigration
legislation only if it had Mr. Trump's support. But GOP senators
said Saturday he had told them he would be willing to bring up an
immigration bill even without Mr. Trump's endorsement.
Mr. Trump so far hasn't endorsed any specific legislation on the
Dreamers, complicating a debate that was difficult even before his
presidency.
Meanwhile, Mr. Trump spoke with House Majority Leader Kevin
McCarthy (R., Calif.) and Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn (R.,
Texas), said White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders. If
the Senate passes the three-week spending bill, it is expected to
clear the House, lawmakers said.
Write to Natalie Andrews at Natalie.Andrews@wsj.com, Kristina
Peterson at kristina.peterson@wsj.com and Siobhan Hughes at
siobhan.hughes@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
January 22, 2018 11:39 ET (16:39 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2018 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.