WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump has agreed to meet with the top Democrats in Congress as a government shutdown nears at the end of the month.
The meeting is scheduled for Thursday, per a source familiar with the negotiations.
Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) demanded that Trump meet with them ahead of next week’s deadline to fund the government amid a tense standoff with top Republican laders, who have refused to engage in bipartisan discussions.
The Republican-controlled House last week narrowly passed a “clean” short-term funding bill, but Democrats rejected it and called it “dirty” because it does not address health care, including expiring tax credits for people who get their health insurance through the Affordable Care Act.
“With the September 30th deadline fast approaching, Republicans will bear responsibility for another painful government shutdown because of the refusal of GOP congressional leadership to even talk with Democrats,” the two Democratic leaders wrote in a letter to Trump on Saturday. “As a result, it is now your obligation to meet with us directly to reach an agreement to keep the government open and address the Republican healthcare crisis.”
