Tag: GOP senate

‘Unconscionable’: GOP Senate Homeland Security chair torches Trump’s Syria policy

Sen. Ron Johnson was one of 43 Senate Republicans to back a bipartisan measure Thursday that rebuked the president’s Syria policy. Credit: Win McNamee, Getty Images

The Republican chairman of the Senate Homeland Security Committee on Sunday torched the Trump administration’s plans for a complete withdrawal of U.S. troops from Syria, saying the exodus of American soldiers from the region would be “tragic” and “unconscionable.”

“ISIS was able to rise from the thoroughly defeated ashes of al-Qaida in Iraq, and I don’t want to be making the same statement six months from now that we bugged out of Syria unwisely and that ISIS has re-emerged from the defeated ashes of ISIS in Syria,” Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin told host Chris Wallace on “Fox News Sunday.”

“I think it would just be tragic if we bugged out, left the Kurds who, by and large, have done the fighting and have defeated the ISIS caliphate, the territorial caliphate and ISIS, if we just abandoned them to the mercies — and I use that term loosely — of Russia and Iran and, possibly, Turkey,” Johnson said. “It would just be unconscionable.”

View the complete February 3 article by Quint Forgey on the Politico website here.

Inside Trump’s shutdown turnaround

President Trump departs the Rose Garden of the White House after announcing the end of the government shutdown on Friday. Credit: Jabin Botsford, The Washington Post

His poll numbers were plummeting. His FBI director was decrying the dysfunction. The nation’s air travel was in chaos. Federal workers were lining up at food banks. Economic growth was at risk of flatlining, and even some Republican senators were in open revolt.

So on Friday, the 35th day of a government shutdown that he said he was proud to instigate, President Trump finally folded. After vowing for weeks that he would keep the government closed unless he secured billions in funding for his promised border wall, Trump agreed to reopen it.

He got $0 instead.

View the complete January 25 article by Philip Rucker, Josh Dawsey and Seung Min Kim on The Washington Post website here.

This is why Republicans were so desperate to keep Nancy Pelosi from becoming speaker again

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) Credit: Win McNamee, Getty Images

Trump caves.

Nancy Pelosi has been speaker of the House for just 22 days, and she just humiliated the president of the United States.

Ever since President Donald Trump shut down much of the government last month, Pelosi has delivered a consistent message to Trump — “my offer to you is this: nothing.” On Friday, Trump took that offer, announcing his support for a short-term funding bill that will reopen the government for three weeks without any additional funding for a border wall.

Trump’s cave on Friday is absolute. He will reopen the government and he will not get his wall. Pelosi wins. Trump loses.

View the complete January 25 article by Ian Millhiser on the ThinkProgress website here.

All About That Base

President Donald Trump, pictured here with (from left) John Barrasso, John Thune, Mike Pence, Roy Blunt and Mitch McConnell,. Credit: Alex Brandon, AP Photo

Republicans in Congress are sticking with President Trump to please party loyalists, but that could cost them in future elections.

HIS APPROVAL RATINGS are abysmal. Americans overwhelmingly blame him for the government shutdown. A special prosecutor’s investigation has resulted in prison terms for several of his administration and campaign operatives, and may result in more. Cabinet secretaries have been forced to resign, other top officials have left in protest, and Democrats who just regained power on Capitol Hill are talking impeachment. Foreign allies are exasperated with him.

On paper, President Donald Trump ought to have the least amount of political capital in modern presidential history. The approval numbers alone would normally lead members of Congress to avoid the president like he’s a communicable virus.

But Trump, entering the second half of his first term, retains a remarkable level of control over his party, even among those he has personally – and publicly – insulted. The extraordinary dynamic is making it even harder for Congress and the White House to come to some kind of agreement to end the punishing, monthlong government shutdown that is now imperiling everything from housing assistance to farmer support to federal tax refunds.

View the complete January 25 artile by Susan Milligan on The U.S. News and World Report website here.

DNC on Republicans Voting to Continue The Government Shutdown

DNC Chair Tom Perez released the following statement in response to Senate Republicans voting to continue to the government shutdown:

“Once again, Republicans have decided to drive us into a ditch instead of taking the path forward and giving American workers their pay. There is absolutely no excuse for their failure today – this is the exact same measure they approved by voice vote just last month. Democrats have voted again and again to reopen the government, but Republicans continue to march in lockstep with Trump and today backed his one-sided, ineffective proposal.

“Hundreds of thousands of workers will miss a second paycheck tomorrow because Republicans chose to go along with Trump’s latest publicity stunt. The American people are demanding an end to the Trump Shutdown. Democrats are ready to pass legislation to fund common-sense, effective border security when the government is reopened. It’s long past time for Republicans to stop holding workers’ paychecks hostage and end the shutdown crisis Trump created.”

Senate blocks White House-backed bill to end shutdown

Senate Democrats blocked a White House–backed plan to end the 34-day partial shutdown, turning it down in a 50-47 vote on Thursday.

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) joined with Republicans to advance the measure, but it fell short of the 60 votes needed to defeat a filibuster.

In an unexpected development, GOP Sens. Mike Lee (Utah) and Tom Cotton (Ark.) voted against Trump’s plan. Lee is considered a fiscal hawk, and Cotton is one of the Senate’s most conservative members on immigration.

View the complete January 24 article by Jordain Carney on The Hill website here.

WORKERS SPEAK OUT: ‘We’re Being Held Hostage’

The Trump Shutdown is in its 33rd day, and hundreds of thousands of workers still don’t know when their next paycheck will come. Trump’s temper tantrum has forced workers to take on second jobs just to pay their bills, and wait in long lines at food banks just to feed their children. The Trump Shutdown has to end.

Here are real stories of Americans hurt by the Trump Shutdown:

“We’re being held hostage, but we are being hurt, tremendously hurt, through no fault of our own. That hurts. It really hurts.” – Federal worker

Continue reading “WORKERS SPEAK OUT: ‘We’re Being Held Hostage’”

Republicans Have No Good Reason To Continue The Trump Shutdown

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced he would finally hold votes tomorrow on two measures: Trump’s “compromise” proposal, and a House-passed package that includes a continuing resolution.

One measure is a bipartisan, common sense plan to reopen the government; the other is just another political stunt. Senate Republicans have already supported the House-passed measure, so they have no excuse not to join Democrats in ending the Trump Shutdown.

The Senate will have a chance to vote on a clean proposal to reopen the government tomorrow.

CNN: “The other vote will be on House-passed legislation backed by Democrats to reopen the government without providing new funding for the wall.” Continue reading “Republicans Have No Good Reason To Continue The Trump Shutdown”

Senate to vote on dueling government funding bills

Senate leadership on Tuesday struck an agreement to vote on dueling proposals to reopen the federal government.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) set up two votes for Thursday afternoon, both of which will require 60 votes to advance.

The first vote will be on President Trump‘s proposal to reopen the government, provide $5.7 billion in funding for the border wall and extend legal protections to some immigrants for three years. If that fails, the Senate would then vote on a three-week continuing resolution (CR) to fund a quarter of the government through Feb. 8.

View the complete January 22 article by Jordain Carney on The Hill article here.

Senate GOP unveils omnibus bill to fund wall, reopen government

President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence arrive to the Capitol to attend the Senate Republican policy luncheons on January 9, 2019. Credit: Tom Williams, CQ Roll Call)

The 1,301-page draft bill includes parts outlined by Trump in his Saturday speech

Senate Republicans have released a $354.5 billion fiscal 2019 spending package that includes $5.7 billion for border wall construction as well as temporary relief for enrollees in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program and immigrants receiving Temporary Protected Status.

The 1,301-page draft bill was released Monday night, and it includes parts outlined by President Donald Trump in his Saturday speech. It is expected to receive a vote in the Senate this week.

Democrats have already rejected the proposal, on grounds that the president should first sign stopgap funding to reopen the nine Cabinet departments that have been closed for the past month. They also oppose the three-year extensions of legal status for the roughly 1 million DACA and TPS recipients, which they argue ought to be permanent.

View the complete January 22 article by Jennifer Shutt on The Roll Call website here.