WASHINGTON — Democratic leaders are scheduled to meet with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office on Monday afternoon, marking the first bipartisan meeting since Trump took office in January. It’s not clear how productive it will be.
The meeting comes less than 48 hours before a shutdown is set to take place and federal funding will lapse for a slew of government agencies and programs. Republicans and Democrats have been locked in a stalemate for weeks over how to avoid a funding lapse, especially as Democratic leaders have threatened to oppose any spending deal that doesn’t contain their health care demands.
“We are ready, we are willing, we are able to find a bipartisan path forward and reaching spending agreement that actually keeps the government open, but meets the needs of the emergency in terms of their health, their safety and their economic welfare,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., told reporters on Monday. “What we will not do is support a partisan Republican spending bill that continues to gut the health care of the American people.”
Jeffries’ posture is in “lockstep” with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., who will also be at the meeting with Trump on Monday, along with House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D.
It’s the first time in Trump’s second term that he will meet with the top Democratic leaders, and it’s the first time ever that Trump will meet face-to-face with Jeffries. The dynamic is sure to be interesting as Jeffries has repeatedly criticized Trump and his leadership, while the president has largely ignored the top Democrat altogether.
The meeting comes after House Republicans passed their version of a stopgap bill to extend current funding levels until mid-November, but that proposal has remained frozen in the Senate where it requires at least seven Democrats to support — something that has yet to materialize. Instead, Democrats are asking for more in return: to reverse health care cuts approved in Trump’s tax package this summer and to permanently extend Obamacare tax credits.
Republican leaders have balked at that demand, arguing such negotiations should be saved for a separate spending bill. But Democrats have expressed little faith in their GOP counterparts, claiming the credits will never be reauthorized if it isn’t done now.
“No one can trust their word on health care. Are you kidding me?” Jeffries said on Monday when asked if he would accept a handshake agreement on the tax credit subsidies. “These people have been trying to repeal and displace people off the Affordable Care Act since 2010. That’s 15 years.”
The top four congressional leaders, known as “The Big Four,” will meet with Trump in the Oval Office at 3 p.m.
House GOP leaders tell lawmakers to prepare for short shutdown
Hours before the meeting with Trump, Johnson convened with House Republicans in a virtual meeting on Monday morning to discuss strategy. The House does not have scheduled votes for this week, a decision made by GOP leaders to jam the Senate with their continuing resolution, or CR, but it’s not clear if those plans will change in the event of a shutdown.
Johnson advised lawmakers to prepare for a short shutdown this week, likely lasting only a few days, according to a lawmaker on the call who was granted anonymity to discuss an internal meeting.
However, Johnson reiterated plans the House will not return for votes this week, but told lawmakers they will likely reconvene as planned next Monday. In the meantime, the speaker advised lawmakers not to come to Capitol Hill during the shutdown week at all to keep pressure on Senate Democrats.
Instead, lawmakers should continue political messaging to place the blame of a shutdown on Democrats’ demands, the lawmaker said.
Upcoming meetings
Meanwhile, House Democrats are returning to Washington for a caucuswide meeting at 6 p.m. on Monday to discuss shutdown contingencies — sending a message to Republicans they are willing to stay in town as long as it takes to reach an agreement.
The Senate will reconvene at 5:30 p.m. for votes on Monday, although it is not scheduled to consider the House-passed CR. That will be saved for Tuesday, just hours before the deadline.
This story will be updated with details from those meetings.