PoliticusUSA is ad-free, corporate-free and provides you with the important news of the day. You can support our work by becoming a subscriber.
Senate Democrats have drawn a line in the sand on the budget. Democrats are not going to agree to anything without restrictions on Trump’s power.
Samantha Handler of Punchbowl News posted on X:
MURRAY on toplines: “We are extremely close.” Dems are still pushing for assurances that Trump admin will spend whatever appropriations lawmakers agree to.
TOPLINE UPDATE from COLLINS: “I believe we’re at an impasse.” Said the “restrictions” on presidential powers Dems are asking for aren’t typically done in these agreements.
Restrictions on presidential power have never been necessary because no president in the last 50 years has tried to not spend congressionally appropriated funds besides Trump.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said on the Senate floor:
Donald Trump has defied the rule of law, he’s ignored court orders, he’s even fancied himself a king, while all his billionaire friends spread through the government like locusts and put public services that serve tens of millions of people at risk.
While Elon Musk holds court in the Oval Office and meets with heads of state, Head Start programs and community health centers have seen their funding shut off.
Donald Trump preaches about corruption and fraud, all the while ridding the government of its independent watchdogs and letting DOGE go through people’s social security numbers – and even their private tax and health data – with virtually no guardrails, no check.
All this chaos is by design.
All this lawlessness has a goal.
Everything we have seen over the last month from Donald Trump and the Republicans has one end game in mind: undermine the rule of law in order to put more money in the pockets of billionaires like Elon Musk.
Besides the tax cuts for the rich, government funding expires in 24 days, and there is no agreement on a bill to keep the government open.
Senate Democrats are slowing down the pace of the Senate and grinding activity to a halt.
They are making everything as difficult as possible for Senate Republicans to get done, and unless Republicans step up and check Trump, it is impossible to see Democrats agreeing to anything on the budget or funding the government.
What do you think about Democrats demanding checks on Trump’s power? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
