After President-elect Donald Trump and Elon Musk blew up a bipartisan spending deal and left Speaker Mike Johnson to pick up the pieces just hours before a shutdown, Democrats insisted Thursday morning that they’re not coming back to the negotiating table.
At least, that’s the message publicly.
During a closed-door meeting with House Democrats, Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries told his caucus that, for the time being, the message is simple: Democrats aren’t accepting anything less than the 1,547-page spending plan that Republican leaders already offered. And if there are consequences — like a government shutdown over Christmas — Jeffries signaled that Democrats should convey that it’s entirely on Republicans.