High Home Democrats are pushing again arduous in opposition to accusations from Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) that they’ve walked away from the negotiations over authorities spending, saying it’s Republicans who’ve deserted the talks to handle inner variations within the GOP.
“Projection,” Home Minority Chief Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) mentioned, including that Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) “has been attempting to get Republicans to answer her for weeks — weeks.”
Johnson stirred the finger pointing Thursday morning when he blamed Democrats for the failure of negotiators to succeed in a top-line quantity to information the federal funding effort. With out congressional motion, giant elements of the federal government would shut down after March 14.
“Leader Jeffries and others seem to be trying to set up some sort of government shutdown,” Johnson instructed reporters within the Capitol.
“We were negotiating in good faith and trying to get the top-line number, but so far as I know, they’ve been sort of unresponsive the last two days or so. So I hope we can get back to it.”
DeLauro, the highest Democrat on the Home Appropriations Committee, rejected Johnson’s claims out of hand. She’s been in talks with the panel’s chair, Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.), and mentioned she delivered the Democrats’ newest provide Thursday.
“The Speaker should check in with Mr. Cole to know about what the offers are. We are at the table, we are working. I guess the Speaker just hasn’t been informed about what is going on,” DeLauro mentioned.
“He knows not of what he speaks.”
Rep. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.), the rating member of the Guidelines Committee, was extra forceful. He mentioned Johnson is struggling to succeed in a spending settlement as a result of he’s ready for marching orders from President Trump and Elon Musk, the billionaire Trump ally who’s heading the administration’s cost-cutting efforts.
“First of all, he’s full of s‑‑‑. He’s a liar. And he’s a total shill for Donald Trump and Elon Musk,” McGovern mentioned.
“So he can blame anybody he wants … but we’re not walking away from the table,” McGovern continued. “They’re not interested in hearing from us at this particular point. Maybe they will be in March.”
The back-and-forth comes as Johnson and different GOP leaders are scrambling to unite their convention behind a spending package deal to fund the federal government by the remainder of the fiscal 12 months, which ends Sept. 30.
Amid that debate, conservatives are urgent for steep cuts in federal applications; average Republicans are cautious of a lot of these cuts, and Democrats are largely against the cuts — disagreements which have induced negotiators to blow by their preliminary self-imposed deadline for reaching a top-line deal.
Nonetheless, Johnson is placing all of the blame for the deadlock on Democrats.
“You need to ask Hakeem Jeffries about that,” he mentioned. “That’s what’s stalled.”
Jeffries responded to the accusations by noting that Republicans management all levers of energy in Washington and have promised voters they’d use it to make good on marketing campaign guarantees.
“You’ve lectured America that you have a big mandate,” Jeffries mentioned. “The place is it?”
DeLauro mentioned she’s optimistic that the edges will come collectively in time to avert a shutdown on March 14. However the timeline, she mentioned, is for almost all Republicans to dictate.
“When the Republicans want to move forward, then we will go forward,” she mentioned.
“But it is in their hands.”
Emily Brooks and Mychael Schnell contributed.
