Democratic and Republican senators told Hill.TV on Wednesday that they are prepared to spend Christmas break in Washington if there’s a partial government shutdown.
“I’ve told my wife not to plan on my being home during Christmas and New Year’s,” said Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.), adding that he thinks there’s “zero chance” the Senate would be in session on Christmas day.
But he said there’s a 50-50 chance of working the final week of the year.
“It depends on who blinks,” he said, referring to a standoff between President Trump and congressional leaders like Sen. Charles Schumer (N.Y.) and Rep. Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) over funding for a border wall.
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) seemed less certain about the prospects of working on Christmas.
“I certainly hope not, but the honest answer is I don’t know,” he said. “It’s going to come down to the president, it’s going to come down to Chuck Schumer. Either one can single-handedly force a shutdown.”
He referred to Tuesday’s Oval Office “fireworks” between Democratic leaders and Trump as “must-see TV.”
During the televised portion of the meeting, Trump promised to partially shutter the government if Congress fails to approve $5 billion in funding for a border wall
The deadline to prevent about 25 percent of the government from closing is Dec. 21.
Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) said negotiators are at “an impasse.”
“We are so close but we’re far away too,” he said.
When asked if Trump was on the right course in promising a shutdown over border wall funding, Shelby said, “That’s not my course. I don’t want to shut the government down. I want to do everything I can to avoid it.”
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who applauded the president’s tough stance with Democratic leaders, said he is so “energized” by the debate over the border because Democrats supported similar wall funding under previous administrations.
“In 2013, we had a $42 billion appropriation — $8 billion of it was for fencing and wall,” he said. “Top say that you can’t spend $5 or $10 billion probably more than that on fencing and wall is not realistic.”
“What’s got me so energized here is that we’ve done in the past more than what the president’s asking for — he’s not the bad guy here,” said Graham, who’s a member of the Appropriations Committee.
Democrats like Coons and Sen. Chris Van Hollen (Md.) pushed back on Graham’s argument, saying Trump promised that the wall wouldn’t cost U.S. taxpayers any money.
“It’s worth reminding people that the president said Mexico was going to pay for it. We wouldn’t be in this situation if he had made good on that campaign promise,” Van Hollen said. “Everyone is in favor of border security — we need strong and secure borders. This is about smart use of taxpayer dollars.”
The standoff over funding is bigger than a border wall and neither side is bluffing, GOP Sen. John Kennedy (La.) told reporters.
Kennedy called Trump’s promise of a shutdown “as serious as four heart attacks and a stroke.”
“I don’t think Mrs. Pelosi is going to give an inch because she’s worried about retaining or getting again her Speakership,” Kennedy said. “If I’ve learned anything here it’s that the thing that most people care about the most is their job.”
Kennedy also said he’s ready to spend Christmas at work, if need be.
“I’ve got a microwave and I’m going to use it to heat up the turkey because I think I’m going to be here,” he said.
—Molly K. Hooper
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