SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS RADIO) – As the U.S. counts down the hours to a potential government shutdown, Senate Democrats have said they won’t support legislation to prevent it as it is currently proposed by the GOP. This week, KCBS Radio dove into what exactly this latest budget battle is all about.
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“The Democrats have been struggling to find their footing on how to best oppose President [Donald] Trump’s agenda, with some in the party opting for loud resistance, others relying on legal action to stop him, and others trying to work out compromises and slow Trump while minimizing their own political risks,” explained KCBS political reporter Doug Sovern on “The State of California”.
Paco Fabian, political director of the progressive grass roots organization Our Revolution joined the program to discuss what activists have been pushing for in Washington. One Revolution evolved from Sen. Bernie Sanders’ (D-Vt.) presidential campaign and it is now the country’s largest independent political organizing group.
“It’s encouraging, right? It’s great to see somebody stepping up and kind of stop what’s been going on, but unfortunately, since the president’s inauguration we’ve seen democrats vote for some of the worst cabinet picks we’ve ever seen,” said Fabian of the Senate Democrats stand on the Continuing Resolution (CR).
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said that his party is opposing the bill passed in the House of Representatives because “Republicans chose a partisan path, drafting their Continuing Resolution without any input, any input, from Congressional Democrats,” in a Wednesday press release.
Earlier this week the House passed the bill, with lawmakers generally voting along party lines. However, one Republican, Rep. Tomas Massie (R-Ky.), voted against the bill and one Democrat, Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) voted in favor of it.
ABC News’ Steven Portnoy told Audacy in an interview this week that liberal activists were pressuring lawmakers to “make a stand here, stand against the DOGE related cuts,” regarding the CR. He was referring to the controversial new Department of Government Efficiency headed by Trump ally, multibillionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk. Federal government layoffs recommended by DOGE have been met with much criticism and confusion.
“We’ve done a survey… of our members,” Fabian told KCBS. “About 28% have already been hurt by some of the Trump administration’s moves, things like, you know, eliminating USAID, and just recently cutting the Department of Education. And about 60% of our members that we surveyed are expecting some sort of economic pain to come.”
Fabian said that progressive voters also want Democrats to make sure that people who are the most vulnerable are not the ones that are “forced to bear the brunt of these cuts.”
As Schumer noted in his Wednesday statements, “Republicans do not have the votes in the Senate to invoke cloture on the House CR,” and need at least seven Democrats to vote in favor of the bill in that chamber.
ABC News’ Steven Portnoy told Audacy in an interview this week that Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky is expected to vote against the bill for similar reasons as Massie – both object to CR spending bills. That would mean that eight Democrats would need to vote in favor of the Republicans’ bill in order for it to pass.
Instead, Schumer said his caucus wants to pass a 30-day stopgap bill to keep the government funded through April. During that time, he said Congress could negotiate bipartisan legislation.
“I hope our Republican colleagues will join us to avoid a shutdown on Friday,” he said.
To pass that, Democrats would have to get even more Republicans – 13 senators at least – to join their cause. Furthermore, The Hill noted that the House adjourned for a week and might not pick up the legislation before the Friday deadline for a government shutdown that could disrupt services.
Fabian told KCBS Radio that people in his organization heard that Schumer was encouraging Democrats to vote in favor of the CR. Following Schumer’s comments, they’re now hoping for a “real negotiation.”
Still, Sovern noted that Democrats have criticized Republicans in the past for blocking CR bills to keep the government open.
“Is there a risk to the Democrats and to our larger political institutions if they do start using the kind of tactics that they deplore when the Republicans use them?” he asked.
“You’ve got to play on the field that you’re playing on, the rules that you’re playing with, right?” said Fabian. “Those rules are shifting at an incredible speed at this moment. And I think Democrats need to speed up their response, and they need to speed up and use every single tool in their toolbox to make sure that… the least among us aren’t the ones that are bearing the brunt of the changes that the Republicans want.”
Portnoy said that some Democrats might be willing to vote in favor of the bill to avoid a government shutdown. In fact, Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) told The Hill that he plans to vote in favor of the bill.
As for the Republicans, House Speaker Mike Johnson said this in an X post: “The House has done its job and passed a clean CR to fund the federal government. If Senate Democrats block an up-or-down vote on this, then it’s crystal clear: THEY want to shut down the government. Period. Full stop.”
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