CNN
–
Republican leaders in Capitol Hill are struggling with important questions as they stare at a deadline that will be quickly restrained to fund the government.
Democrats argue that the bill to avoid the March 14 government shutdown would provide full funding to all agencies and ensure Trump will spend the dollars allocated to Congress.
But Senate majority leader John Tune and House Speaker Mike Johnson are looking for a clear answer on how to write spending bills Trump thinks would be acceptable in the first 100 days of full GOP control in Washington.
The president expressed optimism on Thursday night, declaring on his true social platform: let’s do it! ”
However, Republicans still unsure whether Trump is willing to support the “clean” bill, as Trump still includes money for the institutions he targeted.
Johnson suggests Republicans can codify mask cuts on future fundraising bills, but GOP leaders on the House and Senate Appropriations Committee shot down the idea Thursday. Thune said Congressional leaders will consider the White House requests in a specific language and include them in the funding bill, but they were not a commitment as to whether to provide money to institutions like USAID that the Trump administration is actively trying to kill.
“I don’t know the answer to that, but I think you know where it lies in the issue,” Thune told CNN.
By Friday morning, top Democrat spending leaders had accused Republicans of “walking away” from consultations to keep the government open. A statement from Senator Patty Murray of Washington and Rep. Rosa Delauro of Connecticut said Republicans are “increasing the risk of closures.”
The calculations are complicated. With democratic votes required in both rooms, Johnson and Tune sent Washington for a 35-day shutdown in his final presidency, closing the contract that Congressional Ripolinaists cut with Democrats before sending Washington for a 35-day shutdown.
And it’s even the hardline GOP who asks the White House to clearly state its views.
“I think we need to be very clear about what Doge is doing and what the administration is doing,” said Texas Rep. Chip Roy. “We have to look at what the White House is doing. They have to be clear about what is going on with rebates or what they’re going to do about spending.”
The Democrats also have their own complex paths. They can dig in and try to impose guardrails on Trump, putting government shutdowns at risk. Or Democrats can cut deals, but there’s a risk that they’ll be considered surrender via their first actual leverage since Trump came to power over a month ago.
“That’s not acceptable,” New York State Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez told CNN when asked about Johnson’s push to codify Trump’s cut. “If Republicans want to pass it on with policy priorities, they can vote for it.” Asked if she was worried about being blamed for the shutdown, Ocasio-Cortez said: Republicans have a majority in the House and Senate. ”
But even the top GOP budgeters don’t believe it is realistic to enact reductions laid out by the government’s efficiency in masks.
“I don’t know how that works,” the Maine Senator, GOP chair of the Senate Budget Committee, warned that Republicans should avoid adding languages to ensrine Doge Cuts as part of a stop-gup fundraising measure.
Collins’ House GOP counterpart, Rep. Tom Cole of Oklahoma, shot down the idea of using StopGap’s fundraising bill to codify Trump’s cuts. “To be honest, this has to be bipartisan. You can’t play partisan games in the Senate.”
For Johnson, enforcing Gambit in a Republican-only package also carries the risks virtually every member needs to vote “yes.” Conservatives like Rep. Thomas Massey have made it clear that Doge has not been cut already, while others are calling for increased funding in programs like defense.
“We are not going to vote to fund what Doge finds is wasted, fraud, or abuse,” the Kentucky Republican added that he is reluctant to vote for CR.
Many conservatives have records from the start that they do not support halt funding measures. Johnson raised the stakes of being able to roll the dice with a Republican-only plan that fails on the floor, forcing him to the table of negotiations with Democrats in 11 hours.
Conservative Rep. Andrew Clyde, from Georgia, warned that Republicans could be more open to CRs, including Doge Cuts.
“There’s a lot we’ve never seen before that look like we’re doing,” Clyde said.
There is another challenge with speakers. His ranked defense hawks are putting pressure on him to increase defense spending in future packages. They warn that there is a risk of setting up a program with the Pentagon simply by maintaining spending at the current level.
“If you don’t increase your defense spending, they’ll be Republicans who won’t vote for it.
For now, Democrats have spoken little about how Republicans handle the funding fight when they solve their own strategies.
Behind the scenes, Democrats have been calling for language in every funding agreement to limit Trump’s ability to ignore Congressional expenditure. But personally, some Democrats are wary of publishing harsh demands that Republicans can hold the aisles accountable. Others are also concerned that the demand for a new language to force Trump to spend Congressional money could undermine the party’s ongoing fight in court under the argument that the power of the wallet is already dependent on Congress.
Still, Democrats argue that there is no reason to offer a vote for fundraising contracts if Republican leaders, especially Johnson, control everything in Washington. And many are keenly opposed to Johnson’s proposed language in order to disgrace Doge’s reductions to the law.
Rep. Tom Suzzi, a Democrat from Long Island who represents Trump’s base, told CNN he believes Republicans will be criticised for the closure.
“No, Republicans control everything,” Szzi said.
Connecticut Rep. Rosa Delauro, a top Democrat on the House Budget Committee, denied Johnson’s proposed language to Doge. Asked about the proposal to include such cuts in government funding, she said: “I don’t know what they’re talking about. Every day it’s something.”
She then emphasized that Congress has the power to determine which agencies are funded.
“In the law, there’s a process. It’s called the expenditure process. There’s the power of the wallet. We’ll keep the government open and pass the bill,” Delauro said.
CNN’s Ted Barrett, Annie Grayer, Alison Main and Sarah Davis contributed to this report.
