Senate Republicans still feel bruised from the last shutdown and increasingly worried that no deal will be struck, leaving President Donald Trump with the option to shutter the government over his border wall once again.
According to a Monday Politico report, Republicans are caught between a rock and a hard place: loyalty to the President and the optics of voting for more pain for federal workers.
For now, they’re praying that the bipartisan committee can finagle a compromise before the temporary opening is over.
Last time, the defection of six Republicans who voted for a Democratic bill to reopen the government was the straw that broke the camel’s back: Trump called Sen. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) soon after the vote to concede that the shutdown had to end.
“There is little or no appetite for it,” said Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME). “Those who thought that shutdowns were a good idea have been disabused by that.”
