Partisan Rancor Pervades Democrat Leaders’ Letter to GOP Seeking Budget Talks

Democrat leaders in Congress invited their Republican counterparts to government funding negotiations in a Thursday letter, albeit one brimming with partisan accusations of legislative malfeasance.

The hostile letter sets the stage for tense spending negotiations with little more than a month left to fund the government before the end of fiscal 2025 at the end of September and to avert a shutdown.

“The September 30th funding deadline will be upon us shortly,” reads the letter from Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, both D-N.Y., to their Republican counterparts, Senate Majority Leader John Thune of South Dakota and Speaker of the House Mike Johnson of Louisiana.

But by the second sentence of the invitation, the Democrats level an accusation, making it clear these are unlikely to be equanimous negotiations.

“It is therefore imperative that we immediately meet upon our return to Congress next week to discuss the need to avert a painful, unnecessary lapse in government funding and to address the health care crisis Republicans have triggered in America,” it reads.

Democrats have often accused Republicans of cutting Medicaid in the “big, beautiful” budget reconciliation bill passed in July. Medicaid spending will continue to rise over the next 10 years under the bill’s provisions, albeit at a slower rate than before the bill’s passage.

Both of the New York Democrats are in a tricky position.

In March, Democrats in the Senate helped pass a Republican-backed continuing resolution, drawing harsh criticisms of party leadership from the party’s base and some members of Congress seeking a fight with the new administration.

As a legislative strategist, Schumer is in a stronger position than Jeffries, since his Democrat colleagues will have to contribute votes to end debate on appropriations bills for them to pass the Senate. In the House, the Republicans need only a simple majority vote and thus do not require Jeffries’ assistance.

Both Democrats will have to appear tough in negotiations, even though bearing responsibility for a government shutdown could be harmful for the party’s political optics.

In the Democrats’ letter, they propose discussing “plans to address the looming health care crisis caused by Republican policies.”

Additionally, Schumer and Jeffries seek an answer to whether or not the White House “will submit another rescissions package.”

A rescissions package is a special form of legislation sent by the White House to Congress in order to withdraw unspent funds that were appropriated in the previous fiscal year. In July, Congress passed $9 billion in cuts to foreign aid and public broadcasting.

Democrats such as Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., have argued that rescissions packages harm the appropriations process by showing that Republicans can undo parts of bipartisan funding deals.

“They stabbed us in the back, and if they commit to us that they won’t do that again, then we might be able to write bills,” Murphy said in July. “The vibe today is, ‘We’re going to trade baseball cards with you, and then we’re going to sneak into your house later today and take our cards back.’” 

That the Democrat leaders invited Republicans to negotiations with a letter replete with accusations of wrongdoing likely foreshadows a partisan showdown to take place in the few weeks before the shutdown deadline.

If Republicans and Democrats do not come to an agreement, another stopgap funding bill to extend current spending levels could be in the works.

As they close the letter, Schumer and Jeffries preemptively place the blame on Republicans should negotiations fail.

“It is past time you reveal your plans to meet the needs of the American people,” it reads. “Otherwise, it is clear that you have abandoned bipartisanship altogether and are preparing to shut down the government.”

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