Lawmakers plan to return to the White House today for talks aimed at ending the partial shutdown of the federal government, though there are few signs of it coming to a close. On Thursday, the first day with Nancy Pelosi back as speaker of the House, Democrats passed two bills to reopen federal agencies — without money for President Trump’s wall along the border with Mexico. As such, the Republican-controlled Senate is unlikely to take them up, especially considering the White House has said Trump would veto the measures. Trump has showed no signs of backing down on his demand for $5 billion in taxpayer money to build that wall. As a kind of counterprogramming to TV coverage of Democrats retaking the House, Trump made a surprise appearance with leaders of a border agents’ union to restate his case. The battle is likely to be a sign of things to come over the next two years, as Democrats have vowed to serve as a check on Trump.
Source: latimes.com – Los Angeles Times