Senate Democrats are cautiously optimistic about a potential agreement to fund the Department of Homeland Security. But it’s far from a done deal.
As negotiations ramp up on Capitol Hill to end the Department of Homeland Security shutdown, Senate Democrats seem to be clinging to a particular word: reforms.
It was a term party leaders used in the context of Immigration and Customs Enforcement nearly two dozen times during a March 24 news conference.
The refrain threw cold water on a new GOP compromise to fund the critical agency — minus ICE’s enforcement and removal operations — and end a crisis that has upended air travel across the country.
“Democrats are continuing to push for modest reforms,” Washington Sen. Patty Murray, the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, told reporters. “The current Republican offer in front of us does not do that.”
Meanwhile, bOtH pArTiEs will continue to pretend that they need a “super majority” to pass legislation, even though they could change this parliamentary rule with a simple majority vote at any time.
Why do they do this? Why do they call the solution the “nuclear option”? why do people fall for this bullshit?
“Oh sorry, we couldn’t pass minimum wage, we need a super majority for that! We are the labor party uwu.”
“Oops! We wanted to make big cuts, but have instead decided to increase spending because of those darn Democrats! Gosh darnit!!”
Their full time job is playing golf, getting drunk, and fucking interns. Legislation is boring!
“We are stressed, we need a summer recess after spring recess, right before we have winter break, oh look it’s the holidays we need a vacation so tired.”
Best benefits in the world though, they are able to pass that somehow.
Both parties refuse to remove the limit because once one of them does, the other has no excuse not to. The GOP knows that they can basically get whatever they want in budget reconciliation (the one bill a year that ignores the filibuster) and the Dems know that if they actually start passing laws people will expect them to improve their material conditions. So it remains a useful fiction for both of them.