Democrat In-Fighting; Conservative Media on Trump; Mahmoud Khalil's Wife Speaks
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What led to the Democratic infighting over the budget vote?
No government shutdown, for now.
One key Democratic vote from Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer helped the Republican bill advance.
And some of his fellow Democrats view that as wrong.
I'm Aisha Roscoe.
I'm Scott Simon, and this is Up First from NPR News.
The Republican spending bill narrowly passed the Senate last night with help from a few Democratic lawmakers.
That move led to infighting in a party already in turmoil. We'll have more on that.
Plus, conservative media usually puts a positive spin on President Trump's policies. But how are they covering the economic fallout?
And we'll hear from the wife of a Palestinian graduate student and activist who faces deportation.
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Another spending cycle, another barely avoided government shutdown after the Senate just managed to pass a partisan stopgap spending bill.
But that was only possible with help from a few Democratic lawmakers, which has riled up their congressional colleagues.
Why did Chuck Schumer vote for the Republican spending bill?
And our congressional correspondent, Barbara Sprunt, joins us. Barbara, thanks for being with us.
Hey, thanks for having me.
This was an abrupt shift from the minority leader, Chuck Schumer. What happened?
That's right. Schumer had said Republicans didn't get input from Democrats when drafting this bill, and so they wouldn't get the Democratic votes they'd need to advance it. Instead, he wanted to pass a one-month funding bill to give them more time to negotiate a deal. But on Thursday, he made a U-turn, and he said he was going to vote to advance the bill. Schumer and the nine other Democrats who ultimately voted alongside him argued the bill was bad, yes, but a government shutdown would be worse. They said it would enable President Trump and his top advisor, Elon Musk, to further gut federal agencies. And their support enabled Republicans to ultimately pass the bill largely along party lines.
Barbara, would it be fair to say that Senator Schumer's colleagues just didn't see this coming?
It would be fair. I was at a conference in Virginia with House Democrats when Schumer made this announcement. I saw jaws drop. I saw heads shake. Members were really upset. They said they felt betrayed because they had voted on the same bill earlier this week and all but one voted against it. It was a tough vote for a lot of members, particularly those in vulnerable districts. But the caucus banded together to present a united front and make a strong show of opposition against They said that the bill was essentially a blank check for Trump because it doesn't rein in the administration's efforts to cut spending that was previously approved by Congress. Here's New York Congressman Joe Morelli reacting to Schumer's comments.
I think they're going to rue the day they make this decision. I think this just gives, you know, license to Republicans continue to dismantle the government. They now have the acquiescence of Senate Democrats.
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Chapters
4 chapters
1
What led to the Democratic infighting over the budget vote?
0:02–2:36
2
Why did Chuck Schumer vote for the Republican spending bill?
2:36–8:33
3
How is conservative media reacting to Trump's economic policies?
8:33–13:46
4
What are the implications of the Democratic rift for future policy?
13:46–16:09
Speakers
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