Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives are set to push forward a set of bills to reopen U.S. federal government agencies shut down by president Donald Trump, who now wants American taxpayers to pay for a border wall with Mexico he promised only Mexico would shoulder.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) intends to begin passing individual bills to reopen federal agencies in the next few days, starting with the Department of the Treasury to ensure people receive their tax refunds.
The current shutdown is the third under Trump -- and is now the longest. Trump now demands the Democrat-controlled House write him a check for over $5.6 billion to build his wall with Mexico. The Democrats have resolutely refused, calling the wall "immoral" and "ineffective."
Trump's shutdown enters Day 18 today and shows no signs of an early resolution. Repeated attempts to reach a compromise have failed due to Trump's insistence on first getting the $5.6 billion. In the latest meeting, a Trump delegation led by vice-president Mike Pence began the proceedings by demanding the $5.6 billion from the get-go, which led to the immediate failure of the talks.
Trump will address the American people in a prime time address tonight in which he is expected to offer no concessions while blaming Democrats for the shutdown he bragged he would be proud to own.
In a televised brawl with Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) on Dec. 11, Trump boasted, "If we don't get what we want, one way or the other, whether it's through you, through military, through anything you want to call, I will shut down the government."
"I am proud to shut down the government for border security, Chuck. ... I will take the mantle. I will be the one to shut it down," said Trump.
True to his word, Trump partially shut down the federal government on Dec. 22. His action, which he could have avoided, means more than a quarter of the government has been closed since. More than 800,000 federal workers across America have either been furloughed or are working without pay.
Trump has since promised to continue the shutdown for months, even years until he gets what he wants. To save face, Trump But has threatened to declare a national emergency "depending on what happens in the next few days."
Declaring a national emergency will allow Trump to use up to $2 billion in funds set aside for the Department of Defense to build his wall with Mexico. A U.S. Supreme Court ruling in the 1930s sets a high bar for the conditions that allow a U.S. president to declare a national emergency. None of these conditions is applicable to the border wall Trump wants to build.
In any event, Democrats have vowed to take the issue to the Supreme Court should Trump go ahead with this threat.
Nine departments have been affected by Trump's shutdown. These include Homeland Security, Justice, Housing, Agriculture, Commerce, Interior and the Treasury.
In the meantime, the Democrat-controlled House is left to do what it can to mitigate the damage to the federal government inflicted by Trump's shutdown.
