Senate Democrats say they will reject GOP's funding bill as shutdown draws near
After meeting with his conference, the Senate minority leader said "Republicans do not have the votes" to advance the House-approved measure, which requires 60 to pass.
WASHINGTON — Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Wednesday that Democrats would reject a government funding bill that Republicans wrote and passed through the House, leaving it uncertain whether Congress can avert a shutdown before Friday night's deadline.
The House on Tuesday narrowly approved a continuing resolution to keep the government funded through the end of September.
“Funding the government should be a bipartisan effort, but Republicans chose a partisan path, drafting their continuing resolution without any input — any input — from congressional Democrats. Because of that, Republicans do not have the votes in the Senate to invoke cloture on the House CR,” Schumer said on the floor, calling for a one-month funding bill that provides more time to negotiate a deal.
“Our caucus is unified on a clean April 11 CR that will keep the government open and give Congress time to negotiate bipartisan legislation that can pass,” he said. “I hope our Republican colleagues will join us to avoid a shutdown on Friday.”
He spoke after a lunch meeting between Democratic senators on Wednesday. They went in torn over whether to vote for the House's six-month measure, with some worried that a shutdown would be worse, even as they widely disapprove of the House bill.
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