Schumer says there’s a ‘really good chance’ of avoiding a government shutdown

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, told reporters on Sunday there was a “really good chance” the government would not shut down at the end of the month.

“Now we actually have some good news: There’s a really good chance that we can avoid a government shutdown and all the problems that that would cause for New York and America this week,” Schumer said.

Congress has a little over a week to pass a short-term funding bill, also known as a continuing resolution, to avoid a government shutdown at 12:01 a.m. on October 1.

Last week, House Republicans rejected their own plan to avoid a government shutdown, a humiliating blow to Speaker Mike Johnson, Republican of Louisiana, and jeopardizing efforts to fund the government for six months.

Discussions about keeping the government afloat are especially tense now, with less than 50 days left until the presidential election.

On Sunday, Schumer said he was “getting closer” to a deal with Johnson.

“I’m ready to sit down and talk. I’ve been talking to Chairman Johnson, his staff and my staff for the last four days. We’re getting closer to reaching an agreement,” Schumer told reporters.

“We can do it, but we can’t have any delays,” he said, adding: “We can’t have anyone on either side of the aisle, Democrats or Republicans, stand up and say if I don’t get my way, I’m going to shut down the government. We can’t have that. It’s going to have too much of a consequence for the American people.”

Johnson is expected to introduce and vote on a short-term government funding bill this week.

Schumer’s comments come after he called Johnson’s previous strategy of passing both CR and a bill known as the SAVE Act “unworkable” and encouraged him to abandon it in a speech last Tuesday.

The Speaker has struggled to reach an agreement on a spending plan in weeks, especially after former President Donald Trump called on Republicans to shut down the government if they fail to link the bill to the SAVE Act, a bill on voting and elections.

“Unless Republicans in the House and Senate receive absolute assurances about election security, THEY SHOULD NOT PASS A BUDGET RESOLUTION IN ANY WAY, SHAPE OR FORM. … SHUT IT DOWN!!!” Trump wrote earlier this month on his Truth Social social media page.

Last week, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., slammed the idea of ​​a government shutdown, especially so close to an election.

“Politically, it would be incredibly stupid for us to do this right before the election because we will certainly get blamed,” McConnell said, adding: “We’ve been through this before. I’m all for it, which will avoid a government shutdown, and ultimately, of course, it will end up being a discussion between the Democratic leader and the speaker of the House about how to avoid a government shutdown.”