Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said on Thursday he will not seek to block a GOP-led continuing resolution to restore government funding, likely signaling the risk of a government shutdown on Friday will be averted, reported the Wall Street Journal.
The move, which comes as Schumer has reportedly suggested Democrats have the necessary votes to pass the bill, reflects a bitter dilemma Senate Democrats have faced on whether to hold firm and force a shutdown to try to block President Donald Trump's moves to block congressional funding for government programs, or risk a painful, protracted fight that hurts federal employees and potentially gives Trump greater power to dismantle more of the civil service.
"Democrats had struggled for days on how to approach the GOP bill, which keeps the government funded through the end of the year but also provides the administration more flexibility to downsize and dismantle federal agencies, which Democrats adamantly oppose," said the report. "The funding measure had also provided the party with a rare piece of leverage in Republican-controlled government, and House Democrats and activists have been urging senators to use it to fight back."
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The problem, noted the report, is that "Democratic senators also worried that a shutdown, rather than forcing Republicans to the table, would simply play into Trump’s hands, potentially giving him enhanced power to shutter more parts of the federal government for good, with no obvious way out."
Schumer made this point in his announcement, stating that while he was opposed to any legislation that legitimizes Trump's ability to make federal spending decisions and purge the government workforce, Trump could use an extended shutdown “to cherry pick which parts of the government to reopen.”
So far, few other Democratic senators have publicly committed to backing the bill, with Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) stating in a social media post, “You don’t stop a bully by handing over your lunch money, and you don’t stop tyrant Trump by giving him more power.”