Donald Trump has a way of stomping all over any political advantage he has. Senators Dick Durban (D-IL) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC) went to the president with a bipartisan solution that would have prevented a government shutdown. Trump was all thumbs until the men arrived. Then, the president put a cherry bomb in the agreement and exploded everything. Now, he has done it again.
The Trump campaign has created a ham-handed ad and inserted it into the center of the shutdown negotiations. His ad claimed that Democrats would be “complicit in every murder committed by illegal immigrants:”
‘President Trump is right. Build the wall. Deport criminals. Stop illegal immigration now. Democrats who stand in our way will be complicit in every murder committed by illegal immigrants. ‘
“I will not be lectured about what our military needs by a five-deferment draft dodger.” Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth responds to President Trump’s tweet that said Democrats are responsible for the government shutdown and don’t care about the military https://t.co/qFfa8YfIfx pic.twitter.com/mt3ycg2oBW
— CNN (@CNN) January 21, 2018
By that logic, Trump and his Republicans would be complicit in every child’s illness and death that occurred as a result of them shutting down the CHIPS (Children in Need of Protection or Services health-care program).
House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) stood on the floor of the House and made an impassioned speech blaming the Democrats for the government shutdown. He also appeared on CBS’s Face The Nation. That was when host, John Dickerson, showed the speaker Trump’s ad and asked, according to The Daily Beast:
‘Are Democrats complicit?’
Apparently, that was the first time Ryan had seen the ad, and he danced around Dickerson’s question, saying that the Democrats “certainly not helping:”
‘Well, they’re certainly not helping us keep out government open. They’re certainly not helping us get to a solution on immigration…they’re complicit on not getting things done.’
Then, the show’s host pushed a little harder on the ad. Ryan responded:
‘I just saw that (ad). I don’t know if that’s necessarily productive. It’s no secret that president has strong views on immigration, but what is not productive is a pointless government shutdown that Senate Democrats have foisted on this country.’
Trump’s campaign ad came down hard on Democrats going against the president’s ever-shifting immigration policies.
The Democrats and Republicans each seem to believe that they have the advantage, leaving the country locked down. Monday morning, the shutdown’s impact will hit the nation full-force. That is when people will either go to work unpaid or be forced to remain home, should the two parties and Trump continue their battle for dominance.
Democrats have been committed to providing a budget that would allow the military to make long-term plans rather than operate month-to-month, which is not productive. In addition, they demanded funding for the opioid crisis, community health centers, and pensions. They also want the DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) program for the children whose parents were undocumented immigrants and brought them into the U.S. illegally.
Trump has urged the Republicans to change the Senate rules. He wants to drop the 60-vote budget approval and go with the nuclear alternative, a simple majority vote. Spokesperson for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), David Popp, told ‘The Daily Beast:”
‘The Republican Conference opposes changing the rules on legislation.’
Senate Minority Leader, Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said that negotiating with the president was “next to impossible:”
‘Negotiating with this White House is like negotiating with Jell-O—it is next to impossible.’
Featured Image via Getty Images/Aaron Berstein
