Donald Trump was about to give Democrats something they wanted, but they just had to poke the bear, once again proving that the government shutdown is all a game to them.
Trump had stated that he was willing to use emergency funds to pay at least partial SNAP benefits, but he wanted to get clarity on the matter from the courts before sending out any money.
That plan was upended after an arrogant note from Democrat leadership, and now Trump is stiffening up.
There is a battle going on over SNAP benefits in regard to the use of emergency funds, which Trump officials have said cannot be tapped during a government shutdown, though Democrats say they can.
The funds in question would only cover benefits for about half the month, but it would at least give SNAP recipients something (the normal cost is about $8 billion per month, and there is roughly $5 billion in emergency funding).
Trump said he would send out that money if the courts approved it because he knows the GOP is taking it on the chin right now, especially after Tuesday night’s election beatdown.
He was ready, there was a deal on the table, but that just changed.
Prior to Tuesday, Trump had also requested that Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) use the nuclear option to eliminate the filibuster and pass the continuing resolution (CR).
Trump posted on Truth Social, “It is now time for the Republicans to play their ‘TRUMP CARD,’ and go for what is called the Nuclear Option -- Get rid of the Filibuster, and get rid of it, NOW!” Then he doubled down on it during a Sunday 60 Minutes interview.
Thune, however, had to give Trump the bad news, telling him, “The votes aren’t there.”
Still, Trump was hammering the GOP to get the shutdown ended and get the government reopened, and then a provocative letter was sent.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) sent a letter to Trump, which I have no doubt was solely to poke the bear. A normal letter would have simply requested a meeting, but Schumer and Jeffries wrote, “We write to demand a bipartisan meeting of legislative leaders to end the GOP shutdown of the federal government and decisively address the Republican health care crisis.”
I am sure they both sat back and giggled like schoolgirls after they wrote it, knowing full well that specific wording would send Trump into orbit.
Trump is now digging in on SNAP, posting, "SNAP BENEFITS, which increased by Billions and Billions of Dollars (MANY FOLD!) during Crooked Joe Biden’s disastrous term in office (Due to the fact that they were haphazardly ‘handed’ to anyone for the asking, as opposed to just those in need, which is the purpose of SNAP!), will be given only when the Radical Left Democrats open up government, which they can easily do, and not before!"
If I had to climb into Trump’s head right now, I would imagine that he feels things cannot get much worse for the GOP than they currently are, so why not hold the line and make the Democrats cave? So, we continue at a stalemate because there are no adults in the room. This is now clearly a zero-sum game for both sides, and nobody is blinking.
