Republicans and Democrats play the blame game ahead of a potential government shutdown

By Seth McLaughlin - The Washington Times - Sunday, September 28, 2025

Congressional leaders are pointing fingers at each other ahead of a high-stakes meeting at the White House to avert a potential government shutdown.

Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, New York Democrat, insists the responsibility lies squarely with President Trump and congressional Republicans to prevent a shutdown.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, South Dakota Republican, sees it differently, arguing that Democrats hold the key.

“The ball is in their court,” Mr. Thune said Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “There is a bill sitting at the desk in the Senate right now, we could pick it up today and pass it, that has been passed by the House that will be signed into law by the president to keep the government open.”

“So this decision, in my judgment, at this point in time, is up to a handful of Democrats,” Mr. Thune said.

Government funding is set to expire Tuesday, raising the stakes for Monday’s White House meeting, where Mr. Schumer and Mr. Thune will join House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and House Speaker Mike Johnson.

Senate Republicans will need the support of at least eight Democrats to pass a continuing resolution — a temporary funding measure — to keep the government running and buy time for further negotiations.

Democrats, however, are pushing for concessions, warning the Republican plan would leave millions without health coverage.

They want to reverse Medicaid cuts enacted in the GOP’s “One Big Beautiful Bill,” extend pandemic-era subsidies for Obamacare premiums, and limit the president’s ability to freeze congressionally approved funding.

These demands are part of their bargaining strategy in exchange for supporting the stopgap bill that would extend funding into the new fiscal year, beginning Oct. 1.

Mr. Trump previously canceled a bipartisan meeting aimed at averting a shutdown, but has agreed to Monday’s gathering.

Mr. Schumer called the meeting a “good first step” and urged Republicans to come prepared for serious talks.

“We need a serious negotiation,” Mr. Schumer said. “If the president at this meeting is going to rant and just yell at Democrats and talk about all his alleged grievances and say this, that, and the other thing, we won’t get anything done. But my hope is it will be a serious negotiation.”

Both parties must find common ground to keep non-essential government services operational beyond Tuesday.

Mr. Schumer suggested Mr. Trump’s willingness to meet reflects growing political pressure on Republicans.

Mr. Thune offered a starkly different view.

“What the Democrats have done here is take the federal government as a hostage, and for that matter, by extension, the American people, to try and get a whole laundry list of things that they want, the special interest groups on the far left are pushing them to accomplish,” he said.

• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.