<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss version="2.0"
	xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/"
	xmlns:wfw="http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/"
	xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/"
	xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"
	xmlns:sy="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/syndication/"
	xmlns:slash="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/"
	>

<channel>
	<title>Government shutdown - Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association</title>
	<atom:link href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/tag/government-shutdown/feed/" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
	<link>https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org</link>
	<description>Let No Man Take Your Crown</description>
	<lastBuildDate>Mon, 24 Nov 2025 17:16:04 +0000</lastBuildDate>
	<language>en-US</language>
	<sy:updatePeriod>
	hourly	</sy:updatePeriod>
	<sy:updateFrequency>
	1	</sy:updateFrequency>
	

<image>
	<url>https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/cropped-Screen-Shot-2024-05-16-at-1.06.13-PM-32x32.png</url>
	<title>Government shutdown - Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association</title>
	<link>https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org</link>
	<width>32</width>
	<height>32</height>
</image> 
	<item>
		<title>Weekly Update by Mark Armstrong &#8211; November 24, 2025</title>
		<link>https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/weekly-update-by-mark-armstrong-november-24-2025/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=weekly-update-by-mark-armstrong-november-24-2025</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Mark Armstrong]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Fri, 21 Nov 2025 17:12:07 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Breaking News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mark Armstrong]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Weekly Update]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Caribbean Hurricane]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (Saudi Arabia)]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Donald Trump]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Government shutdown]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Jeffrey Epstein]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Russia-Ukraine war]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Syrian President al-Sharaa]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/?p=48371</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>Greetings, The hurricanes have passed, and didn’t do any favors to the islands.  We can’t even imagine the degradation.  That goes for the rest of the world too.  I’ve traveled, and can’t think of anywhere else I’d rather be. If &#8230; <a class="kt-excerpt-readmore" href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/weekly-update-by-mark-armstrong-november-24-2025/" aria-label="Weekly Update by Mark Armstrong &#8211; November 24, 2025">Read More</a></p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/weekly-update-by-mark-armstrong-november-24-2025/">Weekly Update by Mark Armstrong – November 24, 2025</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org">Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association</a>.</p>]]></description>
										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Greetings,</p>
<p>The hurricanes have passed, and didn’t do any favors to the islands.  We can’t even imagine the degradation.  That goes for the rest of the world too.  I’ve traveled, and can’t think of anywhere else I’d rather be.</p>
<p>If you don’t know it, the media is totally against Donald Trump.  They despise him.  You see his poll numbers, it’s in the thirties.  He’s just back from flying around the world, and everybody wants to be his friend, with the possible exception of Putin and Zelensky.</p>
<p>Ukraine is a particularly tough one.  I don’t know about you, but I don’t like either side.   Both are playing games.  They better solve it now, or pay in spades.  Trump supported Ukraine, but that’s about to run out.  I was disappointed when I found out, but that gives him something to bargain with.  Now both sides better get serious about ending the conflict, or else.</p>
<p>The mainstream’s interest in getting rid of Trump hasn’t waned.  They’re waiting with bated breath, hoping he’ll say something they can condemn him for.  Meanwhile, the government shutdown is over, until January. Will they start the government shutdown again in January?  Have we only been granted a respite?  We all hope not.  I don’t know how much more we can take. Can you believe we’ll have that to look forward to?  Maybe things will be different, but I doubt it.</p>
<p>Trump has just finished circling the globe, bringing home all kinds of benefits.  Then there is the visit by the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, MbS, to Washington D. C.  The other Arab countries better take a hard look at what Trump is doing and play ball.  At least we don’t have Iran to worry about anymore.  They better watch their P&#8217;s and Q’s if they want to be friends.  Who doesn’t want to be friends with DJT?  The alternative might not be good.  We still have a huge debt burden.  With any luck he’ll solve that too.</p>
<p>It seems to me that the Democrats are playing a losing game.  Their big stars are in legal trouble.  They’re doubling down on the Epstein story, but… If they’d had Trump they’d have released the information during the election. You don’t see Jeffrey Epstein’s name unless they’re trying to smear Trump with it. But Trump ultimately encouraged Congress to release it all. We’ll know soon enough.</p>
<p>Mark</p><p>The post <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/weekly-update-by-mark-armstrong-november-24-2025/">Weekly Update by Mark Armstrong – November 24, 2025</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org">Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association</a>.</p>]]></content:encoded>
					
		
		
			</item>
		<item>
		<title>Weekly Update by Mark Armstrong &#8211; November 14, 2025</title>
		<link>https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/weekly-update-by-mark-armstrong-november-14-2025/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=weekly-update-by-mark-armstrong-november-14-2025</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Mark Armstrong]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Fri, 14 Nov 2025 23:46:52 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Breaking News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Weekly Update]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Caribbean]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Government shutdown]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Jeffrey Epstein]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[New York Mayor Mamdani]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Operation Southern Spear]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Syrian President al-Sharaa]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/?p=48335</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>Greeting from Tyler, Comey, Clapper, Brennan and a whole laundry list of bad guys are in a lot of trouble. I feel sorriest for us. We already knew. Now we’ve got to relive the whole thing in agonizing detail. If &#8230; <a class="kt-excerpt-readmore" href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/weekly-update-by-mark-armstrong-november-14-2025/" aria-label="Weekly Update by Mark Armstrong &#8211; November 14, 2025">Read More</a></p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/weekly-update-by-mark-armstrong-november-14-2025/">Weekly Update by Mark Armstrong – November 14, 2025</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org">Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association</a>.</p>]]></description>
										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Greeting from Tyler,</p>
<p>Comey, Clapper, Brennan and a whole laundry list of bad guys are in a lot of trouble. I feel sorriest for us. We already knew. Now we’ve got to relive the whole thing in agonizing detail. If they just would plead guilty it would save us all a lot of time.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p>
<p>Trump is back from Asia and giving interviews. You don’t have the time to watch everything he says, but it’s out there. The media is always on the brink of “getting him.” They’re still carrying on about Epstein. But if they’d have had anything, they certainly would have trotted it out during the election. He’s flying above the fray, getting things done.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p>
<p><span style="color: #008000;"><a style="color: #008000;" href="https://www.politico.com/news/2025/11/14/house-epstein-files-vote-00652964">The media is rife with Trump\Epstien news, except it’s not news at all.</a></span> Epstein apparently wrote something that would do Trump’s presidency in, but whatever. If they’d have had something incriminating they would have used it long ago. The media can’t stand what’s happening, they try to spin it to deceive us.</p>
<p>I don’t know if we’re supposed to believe everything is going wrong, we used to. I’d like to spend a good hour with my Grandfather and my Dad, watching the news. The old timey networks are working overtime trying to make us believe Donald Trump is guilty of something that will spell doom for his presidency. I don’t know about you, but I’m not buying it.</p>
<p>But that’s not the case with the old guard. They couldn’t destroy everything they’d written, and some of the material they thought would never see the light of day has been exposed. Apparently the people that were supposed to be destroying information in burn bags took off early and who knows what will be revealed. They’re probably saving it for the trials. We won’t even watch, because we knew what was going on in real time.</p>
<p>We’re peppered with news <span style="color: #008000;"><a style="color: #008000;" href="https://www.newsweek.com/operation-southern-spear-map-shows-us-military-deployed-11047031">about South America</a></span>, and we’re sending our big guns down there, to Venezuela in particular. If that’s what has to be done, I guess there’s no way around it. But the big one that the news media thinks will go bad is Ukraine. Maybe Putin thinks he has the upper hand, but who knows? Trump is out to stop it. I think he wants stopping wars to be part of his legacy, but time will tell.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p>
<p>Socialists have been elected in <span style="color: #008000;"><a style="color: #008000;" href="https://apnews.com/article/who-is-zohran-mamdani-mayor-policies-background-81760b3d0fcf5c0cd556ab8de5a0335e">New York</a></span> and <span style="color: #008000;"><a style="color: #008000;" href="https://news.ballotpedia.org/2025/11/14/democratic-socialist-katie-wilson-elected-mayor-of-seattle-as-progressives-win-downballot-races/">Seattle</a></span>. We’ll have to wait and see how it pans out, but people are fleeing both places. We’ll see how socialism works when there’s no one to pay everybody. It’ll be entertaining to see how it goes, but I wouldn’t bet against the President</p>
<p>The <span style="color: #008000;"><a style="color: #008000;" href="https://www.cbsnews.com/live-updates/government-shutdown-latest-trump-signs-funding-federal-agences-opening/">shutdown that everyone’s been worrying about is over</a></span>, until January.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p>
<p>Who would ever have thought that <span style="color: #008000;"><a style="color: #008000;" href="https://theconversation.com/how-former-jihadist-ahmed-al-sharaa-ended-up-being-welcomed-to-the-white-house-269631">we’d be hosting the President of Syria?</a></span> Maybe everything is going to work out, in the short term. God is blessing the United States in ways we can barely comprehend.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p>
<p>Mark</p><p>The post <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/weekly-update-by-mark-armstrong-november-14-2025/">Weekly Update by Mark Armstrong – November 14, 2025</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org">Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association</a>.</p>]]></content:encoded>
					
		
		
			</item>
		<item>
		<title>Record US Government Shutdown Ends as Trump Signs Spending Bill</title>
		<link>https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/record-us-government-shutdown-ends-as-trump-signs-spending-bill/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=record-us-government-shutdown-ends-as-trump-signs-spending-bill</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Erik Wasson, Alicia Diaz, Jarrell Dillard | Bloomberg ]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Thu, 13 Nov 2025 23:55:13 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Breaking News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[United States]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Federal Aid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Government shutdown]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Spending bill]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/?p=48333</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>(Bloomberg) &#8212; President Donald Trump signed legislation to end the longest government shutdown in US history, marking the official conclusion to a 43-day impasse that halted food aid to millions of households, canceled thousands of flights and forced federal workers &#8230; <a class="kt-excerpt-readmore" href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/record-us-government-shutdown-ends-as-trump-signs-spending-bill/" aria-label="Record US Government Shutdown Ends as Trump Signs Spending Bill">Read More</a></p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/record-us-government-shutdown-ends-as-trump-signs-spending-bill/">Record US Government Shutdown Ends as Trump Signs Spending Bill</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org">Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association</a>.</p>]]></description>
										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>(Bloomberg) &#8212; President Donald Trump signed legislation to end the longest government shutdown in US history, marking the official conclusion to a 43-day impasse that halted food aid to millions of households, canceled thousands of flights and forced federal workers to go unpaid for more than a month.</p>
<p>Trump&#8217;s signature means the government can begin to resume normal operations, with federal workers expected back on the job starting Thursday.</p>
<p>Continue reading <a href="https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/record-us-government-shutdown-ends-as-trump-signs-spending-bill/ar-AA1QlbsF?fbclid=IwY2xjawODMYJleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEedwYNn_ZeN8YhgDy8Za0cQlMnhW_Y-dOmD3bzTxclWBccP0lzIzGoexr4bOQ_aem_LJOCFU241K5BSybAVOwayw">HERE</a></p>
<p>Source: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/record-us-government-shutdown-ends-as-trump-signs-spending-bill/ar-AA1QlbsF?fbclid=IwY2xjawODMYJleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEedwYNn_ZeN8YhgDy8Za0cQlMnhW_Y-dOmD3bzTxclWBccP0lzIzGoexr4bOQ_aem_LJOCFU241K5BSybAVOwayw</p>
<hr />
[<a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/news/disclaimer/">Disclaimer</a>]<p>The post <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/record-us-government-shutdown-ends-as-trump-signs-spending-bill/">Record US Government Shutdown Ends as Trump Signs Spending Bill</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org">Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association</a>.</p>]]></content:encoded>
					
		
		
			</item>
		<item>
		<title>Northern Ireland political party agrees to end 2-year boycott that caused the government to collapse</title>
		<link>https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/northern-ireland-political-party-agrees-to-end-2-year-boycott-that-caused-the-government-to-collapse/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=northern-ireland-political-party-agrees-to-end-2-year-boycott-that-caused-the-government-to-collapse</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[The Associated Press]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Tue, 30 Jan 2024 19:50:12 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Breaking News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[United Kingdom of Great Britain]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Brexit]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Democratic Unionist Party (DUP)]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Government shutdown]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Northern Ireland]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[United Kingdom]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/?p=45223</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>The breakthrough came after the U.K. government last week gave Northern Ireland politicians until Feb. 8 to restore the collapsed government in Belfast or face new elections. Northern Ireland’s largest British unionist party has agreed to end a boycott that left the &#8230; <a class="kt-excerpt-readmore" href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/northern-ireland-political-party-agrees-to-end-2-year-boycott-that-caused-the-government-to-collapse/" aria-label="Northern Ireland political party agrees to end 2-year boycott that caused the government to collapse">Read More</a></p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/northern-ireland-political-party-agrees-to-end-2-year-boycott-that-caused-the-government-to-collapse/">Northern Ireland political party agrees to end 2-year boycott that caused the government to collapse</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org">Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association</a>.</p>]]></description>
										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><strong>The breakthrough came after the U.K. government last week gave Northern Ireland politicians until Feb. 8 to restore the collapsed government in Belfast or face new elections.</strong></p>
<p class="">Northern Ireland’s largest <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/kate-princess-wales-leaves-hospital-abdominal-surgery-windsor-rcna136124" target="_blank" rel="noopener">British</a> unionist party has agreed to end a boycott that left the region’s people without a power-sharing administration for two years, it said Tuesday — a breakthrough that could see the shuttered Belfast government restored within days.</p>
<p class="">After a late-night meeting, Democratic Unionist Party leader Jeffrey Donaldson said the party’s executive has backed proposals to return to the government. He said agreements reached with the U.K. government in London “provide a basis for our party to nominate members to the Northern Ireland Executive, thus seeing the restoration of the locally elected institutions.”</p>
<p class="">The breakthrough came after the U.K. government last week gave Northern Ireland politicians until Feb. 8 to restore the collapsed government in Belfast or face new elections.</p>
<p>Continue reading <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/northern-ireland-dup-end-boycott-rcna136310">HERE</a></p>
<p>Source: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/northern-ireland-dup-end-boycott-rcna136310</p>
<hr />
[<a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/news/disclaimer/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Disclaimer</a>]<p>The post <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/northern-ireland-political-party-agrees-to-end-2-year-boycott-that-caused-the-government-to-collapse/">Northern Ireland political party agrees to end 2-year boycott that caused the government to collapse</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org">Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association</a>.</p>]]></content:encoded>
					
		
		
			</item>
		<item>
		<title>Conservative senators mull shutdown fight over one-week spending bill</title>
		<link>https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/conservative-senators-mull-shutdown-fight-over-one-week-spending-bill/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=conservative-senators-mull-shutdown-fight-over-one-week-spending-bill</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[David Sivak | Washington Examiner]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Thu, 15 Dec 2022 20:28:54 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Breaking News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[United States]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Government shutdown]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[one-week funding bill]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[spending package]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/?p=43103</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>A number of Senate Republicans frustrated with the rush to pass a year-long spending bill before the end of the year are discussing whether to throw up a roadblock, raising the prospect of a government shutdown later this week. Republican &#8230; <a class="kt-excerpt-readmore" href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/conservative-senators-mull-shutdown-fight-over-one-week-spending-bill/" aria-label="Conservative senators mull shutdown fight over one-week spending bill">Read More</a></p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/conservative-senators-mull-shutdown-fight-over-one-week-spending-bill/">Conservative senators mull shutdown fight over one-week spending bill</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org">Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association</a>.</p>]]></description>
										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p data-t="{&quot;n&quot;:&quot;blueLinks&quot;}">A number of <a tabindex="0" href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/tag/senate-republicans" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-t="{&quot;n&quot;:&quot;destination&quot;,&quot;t&quot;:13,&quot;b&quot;:1,&quot;c.t&quot;:7}">Senate Republicans</a> frustrated with the rush to pass a year-long spending bill before the end of the year are discussing whether to throw up a roadblock, raising the prospect of a government <a tabindex="0" href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/tag/government-shutdown" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-t="{&quot;n&quot;:&quot;destination&quot;,&quot;t&quot;:13,&quot;b&quot;:1,&quot;c.t&quot;:7}">shutdown</a> later this week.</p>
<p data-t="{&quot;n&quot;:&quot;blueLinks&quot;}">Republican and Democratic negotiators reached a deal for an omnibus <a tabindex="0" href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/policy/congress-deal-avoid-government-shutdown" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-t="{&quot;n&quot;:&quot;destination&quot;,&quot;t&quot;:13,&quot;b&quot;:1,&quot;c.t&quot;:7}">spending package</a> that would fund the government for most of next year but need an extra week to work out the details of the legislation. The House, facing a lapse in funding on Friday at midnight, passed a one-week extension on Wednesday to keep the government afloat until Dec. 23, but with hours left to act, the bill could get held up in the Senate if a single Republican senator objects to fast-tracking a vote on the House-passed bill.</p>
<p data-t="{&quot;n&quot;:&quot;blueLinks&quot;}">Continue reading <a href="https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/conservative-senators-mull-shutdown-fight-over-one-week-spending-bill/ar-AA15jpVM">HERE</a></p>
<p data-t="{&quot;n&quot;:&quot;blueLinks&quot;}"><strong>Source:</strong> https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/conservative-senators-mull-shutdown-fight-over-one-week-spending-bill/ar-AA15jpVM</p>
<p data-t="{&quot;n&quot;:&quot;blueLinks&quot;}">
<p>__________________________________________________________________</p>
<p data-testid="paragraph-1">[<a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/news/disclaimer/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Disclaimer</a>]<p>The post <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/conservative-senators-mull-shutdown-fight-over-one-week-spending-bill/">Conservative senators mull shutdown fight over one-week spending bill</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org">Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association</a>.</p>]]></content:encoded>
					
		
		
			</item>
		<item>
		<title>Vice President Mike Pence on President Trump&#8217;s offer to Democrats to end the shutdown stalemate</title>
		<link>https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/vice-president-mike-pence-on-president-trumps-offer-to-democrats-to-end-the-shutdown-stalemate/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=vice-president-mike-pence-on-president-trumps-offer-to-democrats-to-end-the-shutdown-stalemate</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Fox News]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sun, 20 Jan 2019 01:10:51 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[United States]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Border Security]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Border wall funding]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Donald Trump]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Government shutdown]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mike Pence]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[News Video]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Partial governmental shutdown]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[President's proposal]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[United States (US)]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/?p=16553</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[]]></description>
										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class="entry-content-asset videofit"><iframe title="Vice President Mike Pence on President Trump&#039;s offer to Democrats to end the shutdown stalemate" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/1OCaLFtJO0g?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe></div><p>The post <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/vice-president-mike-pence-on-president-trumps-offer-to-democrats-to-end-the-shutdown-stalemate/">Vice President Mike Pence on President Trump’s offer to Democrats to end the shutdown stalemate</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org">Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association</a>.</p>]]></content:encoded>
					
		
		
			</item>
		<item>
		<title>Trump spars with Democrats over partial government shutdown</title>
		<link>https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/trump-spars-with-democrats-over-partial-government-shutdown/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=trump-spars-with-democrats-over-partial-government-shutdown</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Fox News]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Wed, 26 Dec 2018 12:16:18 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[United States]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Border crisis]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Border Wall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Comprehensive immigration reform]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (Docca)]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Donald Trump]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Government shutdown]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Homeland Security Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Illegal immigrants]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Immigration]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[News Video]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Open borders]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Partial government shutdown]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[refugees]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[United States (US)]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/?p=8490</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[]]></description>
										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class="entry-content-asset videofit"><iframe title="Trump spars with Democrats over partial government shutdown" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CQhxReOlo8c?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe></div><p>The post <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/trump-spars-with-democrats-over-partial-government-shutdown/">Trump spars with Democrats over partial government shutdown</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org">Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association</a>.</p>]]></content:encoded>
					
		
		
			</item>
		<item>
		<title>House Passes Budget Deal to Raise Spending and Reopen Government</title>
		<link>https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/house-passes-budget-deal-raise-spending-reopen-government/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=house-passes-budget-deal-raise-spending-reopen-government</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Thomas Kaplan]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Thu, 08 Feb 2018 13:40:44 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[United States]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Brian Schatz]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Federal budget deal]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Government shutdown]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[John Cornyn]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Nancy Pelosi]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Paul D. Ryan]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Rand Paul]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/?p=4017</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>Speaker Paul D. Ryan arriving to vote on Friday. He expressed support for bringing a debate on immigration to the House floor. CreditEric Thayer for The New York Times  WASHINGTON — The House gave final approval early Friday to a far-reaching &#8230; <a class="kt-excerpt-readmore" href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/house-passes-budget-deal-raise-spending-reopen-government/" aria-label="House Passes Budget Deal to Raise Spending and Reopen Government">Read More</a></p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/house-passes-budget-deal-raise-spending-reopen-government/">House Passes Budget Deal to Raise Spending and Reopen Government</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org">Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association</a>.</p>]]></description>
										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class="story-body-supplemental">
<div class="story-body story-body-1">
<figure id="media-100000005729491" class="media photo lede layout-large-horizontal" role="group" data-media-action="modal" aria-label="media">
<div class="image">
<p><img decoding="async" class="media-viewer-candidate" src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2018/02/09/us/politics/10dc-cong-Ryan/10dc-cong-Ryan-master768-v2.jpg" alt="" data-mediaviewer-src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2018/02/09/us/politics/10dc-cong-Ryan/10dc-cong-Ryan-superJumbo-v2.jpg" data-mediaviewer-caption="Speaker Paul D. Ryan arriving to vote on Friday. He expressed support for bringing a debate on immigration to the House floor." data-mediaviewer-credit="Eric Thayer for The New York Times" /></p>
<div class="media-action-overlay"></div>
</div><figcaption class="caption"><span class="caption-text">Speaker Paul D. Ryan arriving to vote on Friday. He expressed support for bringing a debate on immigration to the House floor.</span> <span class="credit"><span class="credit"><span class="visually-hidden">Credit</span>Eric Thayer for The New York Times</span></span> </figcaption></figure>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="300" data-total-count="300">WASHINGTON — The House gave final approval early Friday to a far-reaching budget deal that will reopen the federal government and boost spending by hundreds of billions of dollars, hours after a one-man blockade by Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky delayed the votes and forced the government to close.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="319" data-total-count="619">House Democrats, after threatening to bring the bill down because it did nothing to protect young undocumented immigrants, gave Speaker Paul D. Ryan of Wisconsin the votes he did not have in his own party and ensured passage. In the end, 73 House Democrats voted yes to more than offset the 67 Republicans who voted no.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="182" data-total-count="801">Just before the vote, Mr. Ryan voiced support for bringing a debate on immigration to the House floor — though he did not make a concrete promise, as Democratic leaders had wanted.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="439" data-total-count="1240">With the House’s approval, before dawn and the start of Friday’s workday, and President Trump’s expected signature, the government will reopen before many Americans knew it had closed, with a deal that includes about $300 billion in additional funds over two years for military and nonmilitary programs, almost $90 billion in disaster relief in response to last year’s hurricanes and wildfires, and a higher statutory debt ceiling.</p>
<p id="story-continues-1" class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="424" data-total-count="1664">It should pave the way for a measure of stability through September 2019 after months of lurching from fiscal crisis to fiscal crisis. Mr. Trump will get to boast of a huge increase in military spending, long promised, but his desire to more broadly reorder the government with deep cuts to programs like environmental protection, health research and foreign aid are dead for now — as is any semblance of fiscal austerity.</p>
</div>
<div id="supplemental-1" class="supplemental first" data-between-flex-ads="true" data-pre-height="1287" data-max-items="2" data-remaining="342" data-minimum="400" data-last-item-height="542" data-flex-ad-adjacency="true" data-post-height="1287">
<div class="supplemental-items" data-supplemental-order="0" data-no-ads="true">
<aside class="marginalia related-combined-coverage-marginalia marginalia-item nocontent robots-nocontent" role="complementary" data-marginalia-type="sprinkled">
<div class="nocontent robots-nocontent">
<header>
<p class="module-heading">RELATED COVERAGE</p>
</header>
<ul>
<li>
<div class="thumb">
<p><img decoding="async" role="presentation" src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2018/02/08/us/politics/08dc-cong/08dc-cong-thumbStandard.jpg" alt="" /></p>
<div class="media-action-overlay"></div>
</div>
<div class="story-body">
<p class="headline"><span class="title">Senate Leaders Reach Budget Deal to Raise Spending Over Two Years</span> <time class="dateline">FEB. 7, 2018</time></p>
</div>
</li>
<li>
<p class="thumb"><img decoding="async" role="presentation" src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2018/02/08/us/08dc-pelosi-sub/08dc-pelosi-sub-thumbStandard-v2.jpg" alt="" /></p>
<div class="media-action-overlay"></div>
<p class="headline"><span class="title">Pelosi Held House Floor in Advocacy of ‘Dreamers’ for More Than 8 Hours</span><time class="dateline">FEB. 7, 2018</time></p>
</li>
<li>
<p class="story theme-summary "><img decoding="async" role="presentation" src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2018/02/07/us/07dc-trump-alpha/07dc-trump-alpha-thumbStandard-v2.jpg" alt="" /></p>
<div class="media-action-overlay"></div>
<div class="story-body">
<p class="kicker">WHITE HOUSE MEMO</p>
<p class="headline"><span class="title">Trump’s Latest Surprise: Shutdown Might Be a Good Idea</span> <time class="dateline">FEB. 6, 2018</time></p>
</div>
</li>
</ul>
</div>
</aside>
</div>
<div class="supplemental-items" data-supplemental-order="1" data-no-med-rec="true" data-no-ads="true"></div>
</div>
</div>
<div id="story-continues-2" class="story-interrupter">Mr. Paul, a Republican, made that final point. Angered at the huge spending increases at the center of the accord, he delayed passage for hours with a demand to vote on an amendment that would have kept in place the strict caps on spending that the deal raises.</div>
<div class="story-body-supplemental">
<div class="story-body story-body-2">
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="306" data-total-count="2231">“The reason I’m here tonight is to put people on the spot,” Mr. Paul said Thursday night. “I want people to feel uncomfortable. I want them to have to answer people at home who said, ‘How come you were against President Obama’s deficits and then how come you’re for Republican deficits?’”</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="314" data-total-count="2545">The shutdown came on the heels of a three-day closure brought about by Senate Democrats last month. As midnight approached, Mr. Paul did not relent, bemoaning from the Senate floor what he saw as out-of-control government spending and repeatedly rebuffing attempts by his fellow senators to move ahead with a vote.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="86" data-total-count="2631">“I think the country’s worth a debate until 3 in the morning, frankly,” he said.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="34" data-total-count="2665">Senate leaders were left helpless.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="263" data-total-count="2928">“I think it’s irresponsible,” said Senator John Cornyn of Texas, the No. 2 Senate Republican, lamenting what he described as “the act of a single senator who just is trying to make a point but doesn’t really care too much about who he inconveniences.”</p>
<figure id="media-100000005729225" class="media photo embedded layout-large-horizontal media-100000005729225 ratio-tall" role="group" data-media-action="modal" aria-label="media"><span class="visually-hidden">Photo</span></p>
<div class="image">
<p><img decoding="async" class="media-viewer-candidate" src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2018/02/09/world/09dc-cong-1/merlin_133483080_9071d472-7d8b-47f5-9dbe-6f8d6139e02d-master675.jpg" alt="" data-mediaviewer-src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2018/02/09/world/09dc-cong-1/merlin_133483080_9071d472-7d8b-47f5-9dbe-6f8d6139e02d-superJumbo.jpg" data-mediaviewer-caption="Senator Rand Paul on Thursday ahead of a budget vote in Washington. He held up the vote in a protest of government spending." data-mediaviewer-credit="Eric Thayer for The New York Times" /></p>
<div class="media-action-overlay"></div>
</div><figcaption class="caption"><span class="caption-text">Senator Rand Paul on Thursday ahead of a budget vote in Washington. He held up the vote in a protest of government spending.</span> <span class="credit"><span class="credit"><span class="visually-hidden">Credit</span>Eric Thayer for The New York Times</span></span> </figcaption></figure>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="428" data-total-count="3356">Mr. Paul’s ideological opponents were not buying his fiscal rectitude either. Senator Brian Schatz, Democrat of Hawaii, <a href="https://twitter.com/brianschatz/status/961801347212464128">posted on Twitter</a>: “Rand Paul voted for a tax bill that blew a $1.5 trillion hole in the budget. Now he is shutting the government down for three hours because of the debt. The chance to demonstrate fiscal discipline was on the tax vote. Delaying a vote isn’t a profile in courage, it’s a cleanup.”</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="144" data-total-count="3500">The Senate finally passed the measure, 71 to 28, shortly before 2 a.m. The House followed suit around 5:30 a.m., voting 240 to 186 for the bill.</p>
<p id="story-continues-4" class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="338" data-total-count="3838">Before Mr. Paul waged his assault on the budget deal, trouble was already brewing in the House, where angry opposition from the Republicans’ most ardent conservative members, coupled with Democratic dissenters dismayed that the deal did nothing for young undocumented immigrants, created new tension as the clock ticked toward midnight.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="360" data-total-count="4198">Representative Nancy Pelosi of California, the Democratic leader, told a closed-door meeting of House Democrats that she would oppose the deal, and said that Democrats would have leverage if they held together to demand a debate on immigration legislation. But she suggested that she would not stand in the way of lawmakers who wanted to vote their conscience.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="411" data-total-count="4609">Pressing the issue further, Ms. Pelosi and the next two highest-ranking House Democrats <a href="https://www.democraticleader.gov/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/02.08.2018-Letter-to-Speaker-Ryan.pdf">sent a letter</a> to Mr. Ryan noting their desire for the government to remain open and imploring him to make a public statement about the scheduling of a vote on legislation to protect young undocumented immigrants who are now shielded from deportation by the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="506" data-total-count="5115">“Most of our members believe the budget agreement is a reasonable compromise to address America’s military strength and critical domestic priorities, like fighting the opioid crisis, boosting N.I.H., moving forward to resolve the pension crisis, caring for our veterans, making college more affordable and investing in child care for working families,” they wrote. “We are writing to again reiterate our request that you make a public statement regarding the scheduling of a vote on a DACA bill.”</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="252" data-total-count="5367">The run-up to the House vote, when passage was no foregone conclusion, highlighted the divisions within the Democratic caucus over how hard to push on the issue of immigration as Congress prepares to turn its focus to that politically volatile subject.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="383" data-total-count="5750">The <a href="https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Bipartisan%20Budget%20Act%20of%202018.pdf">text of the deal</a>, stretching more than 600 pages, was released late Wednesday night, revealing provisions large and small that would go far beyond the basic budget numbers. The accord would raise strict spending caps on domestic and military spending in this fiscal year and the next one by about $300 billion in total. It would also lift the federal debt limit until March 2019.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="332" data-total-count="6082">Critically, it would also keep the government funded for another six weeks, giving lawmakers time to put together a long-term spending bill that would stretch through the rest of the fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30. The previous temporary funding measure, which was passed to end the last shutdown, expired at midnight on Thursday.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="141" data-total-count="6223">The deal had been expected to sail through the Senate, and the House had planned to vote on it later Thursday, until Mr. Paul took his stand.</p>
<p id="story-continues-5" class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="328" data-total-count="6551">The White House Office of Management and Budget instructed federal agencies to prepare for a possible lapse in funding, a spokeswoman said Thursday night. Even with a technical lapse in government funding, the effect of the shutdown was limited because lawmakers gave final approval to the deal only hours after funding expired.</p>
<figure id="budget-deficits-debt-bipartisan-spending-bill" class="interactive promo layout-large"><figcaption class="interactive-caption">
<h3 class="interactive-kicker">GRAPHIC</h3>
<h2 class="interactive-headline">Budget Deficits Would Balloon Under the Bipartisan Spending Deal</h2>
<p class="interactive-summary">The two-year budget agreement reached by Senate leaders would contribute hundreds of billions of dollars to federal deficits.</p>
</figcaption><div class="interactive-image-container">
<div class="interactive-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2018/02/08/us/politics/budget-deficits-debt-bipartisan-spending-bill-1518122535885/budget-deficits-debt-bipartisan-spending-bill-1518122535885-master495.png" /></div>
<div class="interactive-overlay">
<p><i class="icon sprite-icon interactive-overlay-icon"></i> <span class="interactive-overlay-text">OPEN GRAPHIC</span></p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
</div>
</div>
</figure>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="160" data-total-count="6711">As the midnight deadline approached, Senate leaders from both parties nudged Mr. Paul to stop holding up the vote. And his colleagues had little to do but wait.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="155" data-total-count="6866">“It’s just further example of the dysfunction of this place,” said Senator Ron Johnson, Republican of Wisconsin. “It’s ridiculous, isn’t it?”</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="113" data-total-count="6979">Senator Johnny Isakson, Republican of Georgia, offered a succinct account of his evening: “Living the dream.”</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="126" data-total-count="7105">Among the Democratic ranks in the House, the objections were also strenuous, but for reasons very different from Mr. Paul’s.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="353" data-total-count="7458">With the monthslong budget impasse appearing to be on the cusp of a resolution, lawmakers were girding for a fight over the fate of young immigrants who were brought to the country illegally as children, known as Dreamers, as well as Mr. Trump’s plan to build a wall along the southern border with Mexico and other possible immigration policy changes.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="420" data-total-count="7878">The uncertain outlook for immigration legislation, and the disagreements on the best strategy to move forward, was starkly apparent as Ms. Pelosi <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/07/us/politics/pelosi-dreamers-budget-deal.html">commanded the House floor for more than eight hours</a> on Wednesday in an effort to help the young immigrants. She said she would oppose the budget deal unless Mr. Ryan offered a commitment to hold a vote on legislation in the House that would address the fate of the Dreamers.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="334" data-total-count="8212">On Thursday, Ms. Pelosi herself displayed the conflicting pressures on Democrats. She simultaneously hailed the budget deal while proclaiming she would vote against it. In a letter to colleagues, she explained her opposition to the deal, but also nodded to its virtues and held back from pressuring other Democrats to vote against it.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="99" data-total-count="8311">“I’m pleased with the product,” she told reporters. “I’m not pleased with the process.”</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="303" data-total-count="8614">In his own comments to reporters on Thursday, Mr. Ryan stressed his desire to address the fate of the young immigrants. But he did not offer the kind of open-ended commitment that might assuage Ms. Pelosi. Instead, he signaled that whatever bill the House considers would be one that Mr. Trump supports.</p>
<p id="story-continues-6" class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="206" data-total-count="8820">“To anyone who doubts my intention to solve this problem and bring up a DACA and immigration reform bill, do not,” he said. “We will bring a solution to the floor, one that the president will sign.”</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="250" data-total-count="9070">Just before the vote on Friday morning, Mr. Ryan offered a further reassurance about his commitment to addressing DACA. Once the budget deal has been approved, he said, “we will focus on bringing that debate to this floor and finding a solution.”</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="182" data-total-count="9252">The fate of the Dreamers has been in question since Mr. Trump moved in September to end DACA. The president gave Congress six months to come up with a solution to resolve their fate.</p>
<figure id="media-100000005729552" class="media photo embedded layout-large-horizontal media-100000005729552 ratio-tall" role="group" data-media-action="modal" aria-label="media">
<div class="image">
<p><img decoding="async" class="media-viewer-candidate" src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2018/02/10/us/09dc-cong-pelosi/09dc-cong-pelosi-master675.jpg" alt="" data-mediaviewer-src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2018/02/10/us/09dc-cong-pelosi/09dc-cong-pelosi-superJumbo.jpg" data-mediaviewer-caption="Representative Nancy Pelosi, the House minority leader, voted against the budget deal, but she did not pressure other Democrats to do so." data-mediaviewer-credit="Al Drago for The New York Times" /></p>
<div class="media-action-overlay"></div>
</div><figcaption class="caption"><span class="caption-text">Representative Nancy Pelosi, the House minority leader, voted against the budget deal, but she did not pressure other Democrats to do so.</span> <span class="credit"><span class="credit"><span class="visually-hidden">Credit</span>Al Drago for The New York Times</span></span></p>
</figcaption></figure>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="248" data-total-count="9500">In recent months, Democrats have tried to make use of the leverage they have in fiscal negotiations, and the issue of immigration played a central role in last month’s shutdown. But Democrats have struggled to determine how hard they should push.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="295" data-total-count="9795">In last month’s closure, the vast majority of Senate Democrats voted to block a bill that would have kept the government open, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/22/us/politics/congress-votes-to-end-government-shutdown.html">only to retreat a few days later and agree to end the closure</a> after Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the majority leader, promised a Senate debate on immigration.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="123" data-total-count="9918">This time, House Democrats were clearly split in their calculations about the best way to exert influence over immigration.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="138" data-total-count="10056">Representative Luis V. Gutiérrez, Democrat of Illinois, demanded that Ms. Pelosi use her muscle to “stop the Democrats from folding.”</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="166" data-total-count="10222">“Anyone who votes for the Senate budget deal is colluding with this president and this administration to deport Dreamers,” he said. “It is as simple as that.”</p>
<p id="story-continues-7" class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="232" data-total-count="10454">Democrats also ran the risk of angering liberal activists who want to see them take a stand. Ben Wikler, the Washington director for MoveOn.org, said House Democrats would be making a strategic mistake by voting for the budget deal.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="131" data-total-count="10585">“If you’re looking at a boulder and you have a choice between a lever or your bare hands, you should use the lever,” he said.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="247" data-total-count="10832">But Democrats secured important victories in the budget pact, obtaining big increases in funding for domestic programs. Voting against those wins to take a stand on DACA — and possibly prolonging the shutdown — carried its own political risks.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="163" data-total-count="10995">Representative John Yarmuth of Kentucky, the top Democrat on the House Budget Committee, noted that the budget deal “meets nearly every one of our priorities.”</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="97" data-total-count="11092">“If Democrats cannot support this kind of compromise, Congress will never function,” he said.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="212" data-total-count="11304">The spotlight was on House Democrats in part because it had become apparent that Republican leaders would most likely lack the votes to push the budget deal through the House with only votes from their own party.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="210" data-total-count="11514">A sizable number of House Republicans rebelled against the deal because of its huge increase in spending. The conservative House Freedom Caucus, which has roughly three dozen members, <a href="https://twitter.com/freedomcaucus/status/961398045022871552">formally opposed the deal</a>.</p>
<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="272" data-total-count="11786">“It was pretty much a smorgasbord of spending and policy that got added to this,” said Representative Mark Meadows, Republican of North Carolina and the chairman of the Freedom Caucus. “Normally, people who eat at smorgasbords all the time are not the healthiest.”</p>
<footer class="story-footer story-content">
<div class="story-meta">
<div class="story-notes">
<p><i>Follow Thomas Kaplan on Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/thomaskaplan">@thomaskaplan</a>.</i></p>
<p>Sheryl Gay Stolberg contributed reporting.</p>
</div>
<div class="story-info">
<p><em>Get politics and Washington news updates via <a href="https://www.facebook.com/nytpolitics">Facebook</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/nytpolitics">Twitter</a> and <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/newsletters/morning-briefing">the Morning Briefing newsletter</a>.<br />
</em></p>
<hr />
<p>Sources: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/08/us/politics/congress-budget-deal-vote.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/08/us/politics/congress-budget-deal-vote.html</a></p>
[<a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/news/disclaimer/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Disclaimer</a>]
</div>
</div>
</footer>
</div>
</div><p>The post <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/house-passes-budget-deal-raise-spending-reopen-government/">House Passes Budget Deal to Raise Spending and Reopen Government</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org">Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association</a>.</p>]]></content:encoded>
					
		
		
			</item>
		<item>
		<title>Confident Trump prepares for State of the Union (while dealing with Russia, immigration)</title>
		<link>https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/confident-trump-prepares-state-union-dealing-russia-immigration/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=confident-trump-prepares-state-union-dealing-russia-immigration</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[David Jackson - USA Today ]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sun, 28 Jan 2018 12:48:55 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[United States]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[DACA]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Donald Trump]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Government shutdown]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mueller investigation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[State of the Union]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[US-Mexico border wall]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/?p=3882</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>WASHINGTON &#8212; After a turn on the world stage, President Trump now faces high-stakes talks over the Russia investigation, immigration, and government spending while preparing for one of the most-watched political events of the year: The State of the Union address. Trump &#8230; <a class="kt-excerpt-readmore" href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/confident-trump-prepares-state-union-dealing-russia-immigration/" aria-label="Confident Trump prepares for State of the Union (while dealing with Russia, immigration)">Read More</a></p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/confident-trump-prepares-state-union-dealing-russia-immigration/">Confident Trump prepares for State of the Union (while dealing with Russia, immigration)</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org">Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association</a>.</p>]]></description>
										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p class="speakable-p-1 p-text">WASHINGTON &#8212; After a turn on the world stage, President Trump now faces high-stakes talks over the Russia investigation, immigration, and government spending while preparing for one of the most-watched political events of the year: The State of the Union address.</p>
<p class="speakable-p-2 p-text">Trump and his aides are exuding confidence over his prime-time address to Congress on Tuesday, even amid still-low approval ratings and the prospect of Russia testimony before Special Counsel Robert Mueller, in the wake of revelations that Trump wanted to fire Mueller back in June.</p>
<p class="p-text">&#8220;Our economy is better than it has been in many decades,&#8221; Trump tweeted Sunday in what looked like a preview of his speech. &#8220;Businesses are coming back to America like never before &#8230; Unemployment is nearing record lows. We are on the right track!&#8221;</p>
<div id="module-position-QmqgA1tQ2Ls" class="story-asset oembed-asset">
<div class="story-oembed-wrap ">
<div class="js-oembed story-oembed story-oembed-twitter story-oembed-type-rich" data-oembed-type="rich" data-oembed-provider="twitter">
<div class="SandboxRoot env-bp-350" data-twitter-event-id="0">
<div id="twitter-widget-0" class="EmbeddedTweet EmbeddedTweet--edge js-clickToOpenTarget tweet-InformationCircle-widgetParent" lang="en" data-click-to-open-target="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/957603804383465472" data-iframe-title="Twitter Tweet" data-dt-full="%{hours12}:%{minutes} %{amPm} - %{day} %{month} %{year}" data-dt-explicit-timestamp="5:18 AM - Jan 28, 2018" data-dt-months="Jan|Feb|Mar|Apr|May|Jun|Jul|Aug|Sep|Oct|Nov|Dec" data-dt-am="AM" data-dt-pm="PM" data-dt-now="now" data-dt-s="s" data-dt-m="m" data-dt-h="h" data-dt-second="second" data-dt-seconds="seconds" data-dt-minute="minute" data-dt-minutes="minutes" data-dt-hour="hour" data-dt-hours="hours" data-dt-abbr="%{number}%{symbol}" data-dt-short="%{day} %{month}" data-dt-long="%{day} %{month} %{year}" data-scribe="page:tweet" data-twitter-event-id="3">
<div class="EmbeddedTweet-tweet">
<blockquote class="Tweet h-entry js-tweetIdInfo subject expanded" cite="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/957603804383465472" data-tweet-id="957603804383465472" data-scribe="section:subject">
<div class="Tweet-header u-cf">
<div class="Tweet-brand u-floatRight">
<div class="Icon Icon--twitter " title="View on Twitter" role="presentation" aria-label="View on Twitter"></div>
</div>
<div class="TweetAuthor js-inViewportScribingTarget" data-scribe="component:author"><a class="TweetAuthor-link Identity u-linkBlend" href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump" data-scribe="element:user_link" aria-label="Donald J. Trump (screen name: realDonaldTrump)"><span class="TweetAuthor-avatar Identity-avatar"><img decoding="async" class="Avatar Avatar--edge" src="https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/874276197357596672/kUuht00m_normal.jpg" alt="" data-scribe="element:avatar" data-src-2x="https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/874276197357596672/kUuht00m_bigger.jpg" data-src-1x="https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/874276197357596672/kUuht00m_normal.jpg" /></span><span class="TweetAuthor-decoratedName"><span class="TweetAuthor-name Identity-name customisable-highlight" title="Donald J. Trump" data-scribe="element:name">Donald J. Trump</span></span></a></p>
<div class="Icon Icon--verified " title="Verified Account" role="img" aria-label="Verified Account"></div>
<p><a class="TweetAuthor-link Identity u-linkBlend" href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump" data-scribe="element:user_link" aria-label="Donald J. Trump (screen name: realDonaldTrump)"><span class="TweetAuthor-decoratedName"><span class="TweetAuthor-verifiedBadge" data-scribe="element:verified_badge"><b class="u-hiddenVisually"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/17.0.2/72x72/2714.png" alt="✔" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" /></b></span></span><span class="TweetAuthor-screenName Identity-screenName" dir="ltr" title="@realDonaldTrump" data-scribe="element:screen_name">@realDonaldTrump</span></a></div>
</div>
<div class="Tweet-body e-entry-content" data-scribe="component:tweet">
<div class="u-hiddenVisually js-inViewportScribingTarget"></div>
<p>Our economy is better than it has been in many decades. Businesses are coming back to America like never before. Chrysler, as an example, is leaving Mexico and coming back to the USA. Unemployment is nearing record lows. We are on the right track!</p></div>
</blockquote>
</div>
</div>
<div class="resize-sensor">
<div class="resize-sensor-shrink">
<div></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<p class="p-text">Also offering a State of the Union teaser during last week&#8217;s visit to a global economic conference in Davos, Switzerland, Trump said: &#8220;The world is witnessing the resurgence of a strong and prosperous America.&#8221;</p>
<p class="p-text">A year and a week after being sworn into office, Trump offers a state of the union while facing a number of pivotal events that could affect his presidency. They include:</p>
<h2 class="presto-h2">RUSSIA TESTIMONY</h2>
<p class="p-text">Attorneys for Trump and Mueller are negotiating a possible interview of the president, a sign that at least part of the special counsel&#8217;s investigation is approaching an end.</p>
<p class="p-text">Mueller&#8217;s team is probing any links between Trump&#8217;s campaign and Russians who sought to influence the 2016 presidential election via stolen emails and fake news about Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton.</p>
<p class="p-text">Mueller is also looking into claims that Trump might have sought to obstruct the investigation through actions that included the May dismissal of FBI Director James Comey, and <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2018/01/26/why-trumps-desire-fire-mueller-may-invite-obstruction-case/1068812001/">perhaps a planned dismissal of Mueller himself.</a></p>
<p class="p-text">As Trump spoke with economic leaders in Davos, <em>The New York Times</em> reported that Trump actually ordered Mueller&#8217;s firing in June, but backed off only after White House Counsel Don McGahn threatened to resign over the move.</p>
<p class="p-text"><a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2018/01/25/report-trump-wanted-mueller-fired/1068024001/">Trump derided the story as &#8220;fake news,&#8221;</a> but officials familiar with the investigation told USA TODAY the president discussed firing Mueller fired back in June, but attorneys and aides talked him out of it.</p>
<p class="p-text">Since then, they said, the president has cooperated with the special counsel&#8217;s office. While aides say Trump has is frustrated over the Russia investigation, he and they remain confident it will end soon and show he engaged in no wrongdoing.</p>
<p class="p-text">During an impromptu Q-and-A with reporters at the White House last week, Trump said he is looking forward to testifying and willing to do so under oath.</p>
<p class="p-text">His lawyers, however, said <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2018/01/25/negotiations-trumps-russia-testimony-still-undertrumps-promise-testify-under-oath-russia-probe-negot/1065107001/">the interview remains subject to negotiations</a> on the circumstances of the testimony, including time limits and areas of questioning as well as whether the interview would be conducted under oath.</p>
<p class="p-text">Trump is not expected to address the Russia probe during his State of the Union, but other aspects of the probe are likely to come up.</p>
<h2 class="presto-h2">ANOTHER GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN?</h2>
<p class="p-text">Congress ended a three-day shutdown a week ago by passing a new temporary spending plan, but it expires on Feb. 8, just a week from Thursday.</p>
<p class="p-text">Budget negotiations involving the White House and congressional Republicans and Democrats center on the same issue that led to the first shutdown, immigration.</p>
<h2 class="presto-h2">IMMIGRATION TALKS</h2>
<p class="p-text">While Trump spoke in Davos, his aides unveiled an immigration plan calling for tighter security provisions at the border, including a $25 billion trust fund for his long-advocated wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.</p>
<p class="p-text">The Trump administration is also seeking to meet Democratic demands by reviving the program known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals and o block deportation of <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2018/01/24/trump-unveil-new-immigration-proposal-monday/1063178001/">&#8220;DREAMers,&#8221; </a>young people brought into the United States illegally by their parents.</p>
<p class="p-text"><a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/experience/food-and-wine/news-festivals-events/2018/01/25/trump-team-unveils-new-immigration-framework-path-citizenship-dreamers/1066980001/">The administration&#8217;s proposed plan</a> includes a path to citizenship for up to 1.8 million people who qualify under DACA, a provision drawing catcalls from conservative Republicans who say it amounts of amnesty for law breakers.</p>
<p class="p-text">Some Democrats, meanwhile, said the plan&#8217;s call to restrict family-based migration and other programs are designed to restrict currently legal immigration, especially for Hispanics. &#8220;They are part of the Trump administration’s unmistakable campaign to make America white again,&#8221; said House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi.</p>
<div id="module-position-QmqgA1tSanw" class="story-asset oembed-asset">
<div class="story-oembed-wrap ">
<div class="js-oembed story-oembed story-oembed-twitter story-oembed-type-rich" data-oembed-type="rich" data-oembed-provider="twitter">
<div class="SandboxRoot env-bp-350" data-twitter-event-id="1">
<div id="twitter-widget-1" class="EmbeddedTweet EmbeddedTweet--edge js-clickToOpenTarget tweet-InformationCircle-widgetParent" lang="en" data-click-to-open-target="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/957462746060206080" data-iframe-title="Twitter Tweet" data-dt-full="%{hours12}:%{minutes} %{amPm} - %{day} %{month} %{year}" data-dt-explicit-timestamp="7:58 PM - Jan 27, 2018" data-dt-months="Jan|Feb|Mar|Apr|May|Jun|Jul|Aug|Sep|Oct|Nov|Dec" data-dt-am="AM" data-dt-pm="PM" data-dt-now="now" data-dt-s="s" data-dt-m="m" data-dt-h="h" data-dt-second="second" data-dt-seconds="seconds" data-dt-minute="minute" data-dt-minutes="minutes" data-dt-hour="hour" data-dt-hours="hours" data-dt-abbr="%{number}%{symbol}" data-dt-short="%{day} %{month}" data-dt-long="%{day} %{month} %{year}" data-scribe="page:tweet" data-twitter-event-id="2">
<div class="EmbeddedTweet-tweet">
<blockquote class="Tweet h-entry js-tweetIdInfo subject expanded" cite="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/957462746060206080" data-tweet-id="957462746060206080" data-scribe="section:subject">
<div class="Tweet-header u-cf">
<div class="Tweet-brand u-floatRight">
<div class="Icon Icon--twitter " title="View on Twitter" role="presentation" aria-label="View on Twitter"></div>
</div>
<div class="TweetAuthor js-inViewportScribingTarget" data-scribe="component:author"><a class="TweetAuthor-link Identity u-linkBlend" href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump" data-scribe="element:user_link" aria-label="Donald J. Trump (screen name: realDonaldTrump)"><span class="TweetAuthor-avatar Identity-avatar"><img decoding="async" class="Avatar Avatar--edge" src="https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/874276197357596672/kUuht00m_normal.jpg" alt="" data-scribe="element:avatar" data-src-2x="https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/874276197357596672/kUuht00m_bigger.jpg" data-src-1x="https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/874276197357596672/kUuht00m_normal.jpg" /></span><span class="TweetAuthor-decoratedName"><span class="TweetAuthor-name Identity-name customisable-highlight" title="Donald J. Trump" data-scribe="element:name">Donald J. Trump</span></span></a></p>
<div class="Icon Icon--verified " title="Verified Account" role="img" aria-label="Verified Account"></div>
<p><a class="TweetAuthor-link Identity u-linkBlend" href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump" data-scribe="element:user_link" aria-label="Donald J. Trump (screen name: realDonaldTrump)"><span class="TweetAuthor-decoratedName"><span class="TweetAuthor-verifiedBadge" data-scribe="element:verified_badge"><b class="u-hiddenVisually"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/17.0.2/72x72/2714.png" alt="✔" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" /></b></span></span><span class="TweetAuthor-screenName Identity-screenName" dir="ltr" title="@realDonaldTrump" data-scribe="element:screen_name">@realDonaldTrump</span></a></div>
</div>
<div class="Tweet-body e-entry-content" data-scribe="component:tweet">
<p class="u-hiddenVisually js-inViewportScribingTarget">
<p>I have offered DACA a wonderful deal, including a doubling in the number of recipients &amp; a twelve year pathway to citizenship, for two reasons: (1) Because the Republicans want to fix a long time terrible problem. (2) To show that Democrats do not want to solve DACA, only use it!</p>
<p>Trump and aides hope his State of the Union address will launch a second-year agenda that includes a major infrastructure program, new trade rules with other countries, and more federal de-regulation, as well as immigration and a military build-up.</p>
<p>Technically, this is Trump&#8217;s first formal State of the Union address. The new president did speak back in February to a joint session of Congress, but that was billed as an address to Congress because new presidents aren&#8217;t expected to know the true state of the union.</p>
<p>While Trump sees the speech as a chance to jump-start his presidency, others are skeptical that a single address can do much.</p>
<p>After a year of contentiousness ranging from health care to a nuclear stand-off with North Korea, <a href="https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/other/president_trump_job_approval-6179.html">the Real Clear Politics website</a> collection of polls gives Trump an average job approval rating of 40%.</p>
<p>Princeton historian Julian Zelizer said Trump comes into the State of the Union with &#8220;two great assets:&#8221; A &#8220;roaring economy&#8221; and Republican majorities in the House and Senate that have largely stood with him even in times of trouble.</p>
<p>&#8220;But his approval ratings are very low, the (Mueller) investigation is more serious than ever, Democrats remain energized with good numbers going into the midterm, and his legislative record is thin,&#8221; Zelizer said. &#8220;His perception of strength does not reflect the overall reality of his situation.</p>
<p>&#8220;If the past is any guide, something new will happen after Trump&#8217;s speech.</p>
<p>Trump&#8217;s address to Congress in February drew good reviews. But days later, he set off a new firestorm by tweeting the unsubstantiated claim that predecessor Barack Obama &#8220;had my &#8216;wires tapped&#8217; in Trump Tower just before victory.</p>
<p>&#8220;In the months since, Trump has often stepped on his own message, whether it&#8217;s applying barnyard-like descriptions to African countries or expressing seemingly sympathetic comments about while nationalists who marched in Charlottesville, Va.</p>
<p>in one of the planned follow-ups to Trump&#8217;s State of the Union, talk show host Jimmy Kimmel plans to interview Stormy Daniels, the adult film actress who claims to have had an affair in the past with the president.</p>
<hr />
<p>Source: <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2018/01/28/confident-trump-prepares-state-union-while-dealing-russia-immigration/1072122001/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2018/01/28/confident-trump-prepares-state-union-while-dealing-russia-immigration/1072122001/</a></p>
[<a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/news/disclaimer/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Disclaimer</a>]</div>
</blockquote>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div><p>The post <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/confident-trump-prepares-state-union-dealing-russia-immigration/">Confident Trump prepares for State of the Union (while dealing with Russia, immigration)</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org">Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association</a>.</p>]]></content:encoded>
					
		
		
			</item>
		<item>
		<title>Senate to vote Monday on plan to reopen government</title>
		<link>https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/senate-vote-monday-plan-reopen-government/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=senate-vote-monday-plan-reopen-government</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Burgess Everett, Heather Caygle and Elana Schor - Politico]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sun, 21 Jan 2018 06:01:07 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[United States]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Chris Coons]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Chuck Schumer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[DACA]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Dreamers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Government shutdown]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Government shutdown 2018]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Immigration]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[John Thune]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mark Meadows]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mitch McConnell]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Nancy Pelosi]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Senate Democrates]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Senate Republicans]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/?p=3767</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>But Democratic leader Chuck Schumer says there&#8217;s no deal yet. &#160; Sens. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) talk to reporters as they exit a meeting with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Sunday. &#124; Drew &#8230; <a class="kt-excerpt-readmore" href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/senate-vote-monday-plan-reopen-government/" aria-label="Senate to vote Monday on plan to reopen government">Read More</a></p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/senate-vote-monday-plan-reopen-government/">Senate to vote Monday on plan to reopen government</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org">Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association</a>.</p>]]></description>
										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>But Democratic leader Chuck Schumer says there&#8217;s no deal yet.</p>
<div class="fig-graphic"><picture><img decoding="async" title="Senators on Day 2 of the shutdown. | Getty Images" src="https://static.politico.com/dims4/default/40b3fdd/2147483647/resize/1160x%3E/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fstatic.politico.com%2F94%2F95%2Faa119e7e4126889c2aae5ce2dba7%2F180121-graham-gty-1160.jpg" alt="Senators on Day 2 of the shutdown. | Getty Images" /></picture></div>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Sens. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) talk to reporters as they exit a meeting with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Sunday. | Drew Angerer/Getty Images</p>
<p>Party leaders and rank-and-file senators spent all day Sunday haggling over a deal to reopen the government. But Washington&#8217;s painful shutdown will nonetheless drag into Day Three.</p>
<p>Shortly after 9 p.m. Sunday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced that the chamber would vote on a plan at noon Monday to fund the government through Feb. 8. In an attempted concession to Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, McConnell said he would take up legislation to protect some young immigrants from deportation if a deal to address their status is not reached by the time funding expires in early February.</p>
<div class="story-interrupt format-s pos-alpha predetermined fixed-story-third-paragraph">But Democrats were not ready to call it a deal, even as McConnell implored the Senate to vote Sunday night to reopen the government. &#8220;The shutdown should stop today,&#8221; he said.</div>
<p>Schumer said further negotiations were needed and spurned McConnell&#8217;s request, pushing a vote until Monday, when hundreds of thousands of federal employees will be furloughed.</p>
<p>&#8220;Talks will continue, but we have yet to reach an agreement on a path forward that would be acceptable for both sides,&#8221; Schumer said.</p>
<p>The vote Monday is expected to fail absent further progress between the two party leaders before then.</p>
<p>Senate Republicans will have a conference meeting at 11 a.m. Monday to discuss the state of play, aides said.</p>
<p>The late-night exchange capped a furious round of negotiations Sunday between Schumer and McConnell, as well as a group of deal-making senators desperate to reopen the shuttered government. Senators from both parties took a proposal to the party leaders after the centrists met for 90 minutes on Sunday afternoon.</p>
<p>Their proposal would reopen the government through Feb. 8 and have McConnell commit on the Senate floor to holding an immigration vote before that date — a commitment that McConnell approached but did not definitively agree to, in part because Republicans worry they could not complete an immigration debate before the next funding deadline.</p>
<p>Keeping the shutdown going given McConnell’s stated goal of an immigration vote would be “counterproductive,” said Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) as the Senate adjourned for the night. As for Democrats’ push for a more firm immigration commitment from the GOP leader, Graham suggested McConnell’s Sunday night statement would have to suffice: “I assume if we get a deal, it will be more formal.”</p>
<p>Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), who along with Graham is meeting with roughly 20 senators in both parties, said he hoped the group would meet again.</p>
<p>After not speaking on Saturday, McConnell and Schumer met privately for more than 30 minutes on Sunday. Schumer, however, did not talk to the president, an aide said.</p>
<p>Flake said the Senate needs to move independently of the White House at this point to resolve the confrontation that&#8217;s produced the first shutdown in more than four years.</p>
<p>“The important thing is breaking with the White House on this and not relying on the White House to give its approval,&#8221; Flake said.</p>
<p>Despite his public thaw after two days of lashing Democrats, it remains to be seen whether McConnell can provide enough reassurance to Democrats to win their votes. Some Democrats said they need to know the House would take action on an immigration bill, too.</p>
<p>“We have to have in our own mind some way to ensure that the House feels a need to bring up the issue as well,” said Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.).</p>
<p>The centrists are eager to end the brinkmanship that has erupted at the one-year mark of Donald Trump’s presidency. Democrats insist that any funding legislation extend Obama-era protections for undocumented immigrants who came to the United States as children, while Republicans have said they won’t negotiate on immigration until the government reopens.</p>
<p>The group of roughly 20 moderates includes Sens. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Flake, Graham, Mark Warner (D-Va.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Tim Kaine (D-Va.) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.).</p>
<p>Some liberals are still wary. They fear that Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) could repeat the exercise of 2013, when the Senate passed an immigration bill and the House didn&#8217;t take it up.</p>
<p>“It depends on whether it’s part of a must-pass bill. That is my strong preference. The goal is to have the [DREAM] Act passed,” said Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) in an interview. “I have no confidence, zero, in Paul Ryan bringing that bill to the floor.&#8221;</p>
<p>Republican leaders are also skeptical. They believe committing to an immigration vote would just throw Democrats a lifeline and prefer to negotiate on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program only after the government reopens.</p>
<p>“Does that mean if we have an agreement by [Feb.] 15 that that’s not good enough?” Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn (R-Texas) said of the plan to hold an immigration vote by Feb. 8. “I just think people are nervous because they shut down the government and are looking for face-saving.”</p>
<p>Still, McConnell listened to the presentation by a group of GOP senators to allow such a vote by Feb. 8. He thanked those Republicans on the floor Sunday evening.</p>
<p>So far, House Republican leaders have rejected the idea of committing to holding an immigration vote on the House floor and are refusing to negotiate on anything beyond a three-week continuing resolution. Ryan said Sunday the House will accept a short-term bill through Feb. 8 but will commit only to an immigration bill “that the president supports to fix this problem.”</p>
<div class="story-interrupt pos-alpha predetermined lazy-load-slot ">Lawmakers had hoped to reach a deal before Monday, when federal employees would normally return to work, to lessen the impact of the shutdown.</div>
<p>Though negotiations in the Senate gained some traction, both parties continued to execute their public relations strategies. Democrats blasted Trump, blaming him for walking away from an immigration deal with Schumer on Friday that they say could have prevented the shutdown.</p>
<p>“How can you negotiate with the president under those circumstances where he agrees face-to-face to move forward with a certain path and then within two hours calls back and pulls the plug?” Durbin said on ABC’s “This Week with George Stephanopoulos.”</p>
<p>Schumer offered Trump support for the border wall in exchange for a deal to protect the nearly 700,000 so-called Dreamers facing deportation. But since then, Republicans and Democrats have publicly sparred over whether Schumer was offering full funding for the wall or not.</p>
<p>Republicans, meanwhile, accused Democrats of taking “hostages” in order to strong-arm the GOP into an immigration deal that has eluded Congress for years.</p>
<p>“This is the Democrats trying to hold our military hostage for an issue that has been with us for decades,” House Freedom Caucus Chairman Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) said on ABC. “I think we need to resolve it — the president wants to resolve it — but you don’t do that in the middle of a shutdown.”</p>
<p>But even Republicans seemed uncomfortable defending a Trump campaign ad saying Democratic leaders would be “complicit” in murders committed by undocumented immigrants during the shutdown. Republican leaders know they will need Democratic cooperation to break the shutdown logjam.</p>
<p>“I don’t know if that’s necessarily productive,&#8221; Ryan said of the Trump ad.</p>
<p>So far, Trump has not called for a meeting with the “Big Four” congressional leaders — McConnell, Schumer, Ryan and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) — and Republicans on the Sunday news shows gave no indication he would do so. But White House legislative affairs director Marc Short said Trump has been in touch with GOP leaders throughout the weekend.</p>
<p>&#8220;The president has been involved,&#8221; Short said on NBC&#8217;s &#8220;Meet the Press.&#8221; &#8220;Yesterday he was speaking to Leader McConnell, Leader Ryan. He also spoke to Kevin McCarthy.&#8221;</p>
<p><i>John Bresnahan and Rachael Bade contributed to this report.<br />
</i></p>
<hr />
<p>Source: <a href="https://www.politico.com/story/2018/01/21/government-shutdown-2018-trump-senate-354113" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://www.politico.com/story/2018/01/21/government-shutdown-2018-trump-senate-354113</a></p>
[<a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/news/disclaimer/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Disclaimer</a>]
<p>&nbsp;</p><p>The post <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/senate-vote-monday-plan-reopen-government/">Senate to vote Monday on plan to reopen government</a> first appeared on <a href="https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org">Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association</a>.</p>]]></content:encoded>
					
		
		
			</item>
	</channel>
</rss>
