Congressional Leaders Navigate INTENSE Talks With Biden As Shutdown Looms

The clock is ticking, with the shutdown potentially commencing at the end of this week if a resolution is not reached.

The meeting was attended by House Speaker Mike Johnson, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. All four leaders confirmed their commitment to securing a deal on government funding by Friday, though they offered scant details on their strategy to achieve this.

The primary focus of the meeting was to deliberate on the impending federal spending deadlines on March 1 and March 8, and to address the urgent need to pass aid for Ukraine.

Schumer characterized the discussions on government funding as "productive and intense," and suggested that a short-term extension of fiscal year 2023's funding, known as a continuing resolution (CR), might be necessary to buy more time for negotiations.

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February 28, 2024

Jeffries described the meeting as "honest" and "candid," with "firm discussions about the border" taking place. Johnson, who had a separate one-on-one meeting with Biden after the main session, labeled both conversations as "frank and honest."

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Schumer reported after the meeting that "the speaker said unequivocally he wants to avoid a government shutdown." He added, "We made it clear that that means not letting any of the government appropriations bills lapse, which means you need some CRs to get that done. But, we're making good progress, and we're hopeful we can get this done really quickly."

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Despite the remaining differences, Schumer expressed optimism, stating they were not "insurmountable." However, Johnson has not indicated any willingness to put another CR on the floor, having previously declared in November that he was "done" with CRs.

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The implications of a government shutdown are severe, potentially leading to the abrupt closure of government offices and the furloughing of numerous federal employees if it extends beyond the weekend.

Johnson, speaking after the White House meeting, said, "We have been working in good faith around the clock every single day, for months and weeks, and over the last several days, quite literally around the clock, to get that job done. We're very optimistic."

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He added, "We believe that we can get to agreement on these issues and prevent a government shutdown. And that's our first responsibility."

The most contentious part of the meeting was the discussion on providing aid to Ukraine, according to Schumer. He described the atmosphere as so intense that "you could cut the intensity in that room with a knife."

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Schumer recalled that during the meeting, Johnson was cornered by the others in the room, including McConnell, the only other Republican present. He described the meeting on Ukraine as "one of the most intense I have ever encountered in my many meetings in the Oval Office."

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Schumer further revealed that Johnson insisted that border security measures must be implemented in exchange for a House vote on Ukraine aid, a stance he has been pressured to maintain by his right flank.

Johnson confirmed this, telling reporters that he made the border crisis a central point of discussion in the meeting. He said, "When I showed up today my purpose was to express what I believe is that obvious truth. And that is we must take care of America's needs first. When you talk about America's needs, you need to talk further about our open border."

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Schumer responded by saying, "There's a logic to solving the border. We want to solve it, but we have to do Ukraine right now, because there’s a way that can get done quickly, because that has broad, bipartisan consensus. And the border will take some more work, which we’ll be happy to work on to get it done — but not hold up the Ukraine bill for it."

Earlier this year, Senate and White House negotiators unveiled a bipartisan deal on border security and foreign aid, which included $60 billion for Ukraine. However, the proposal was met with widespread criticism from Republicans who deemed the border measures insufficient, leading to its eventual demise.