Paralyzed Congress waits for Trump’s input on how to end the shutdown

Congress, paralyzed by a partisan divide over border wall funding, is waiting to find out what kind of government funding deal President Trump is willing to sign now that more than a dozen measures have failed to win approval in both the House and the Senate.

Senate Democratic leaders, according to an aide, “are waiting to hear back from Sen. McConnell about his talks with the White House.”

Mitch McConnell, the majority leader, is under increasing pressure form the GOP conference to facilitate an end to the government shutdown, which is now entering a second month and is hobbling critical government functions.

Trump himself is expected to speak Friday afternoon, but it was unclear if he would be able to toss out any ideas that can be accepted by both parties.

But the pressure to find a solution was rising on Friday, after the Federal Aviation Administration reported airport delays because air traffic controllers are calling in sick. The controllers are among the 800,000 federal employees about to miss a second paycheck due to a partial government shutdown that began on Dec. 22.

Republicans who met privately with McConnell and Vice President Mike Pence Thursday said they called for an end to the shutdown, even though they support Trump’s demand for a border wall, which is reason for the spending stalemate.

Six Republicans, including Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, voted for a Democratic measure to open the government until Feb. 8.

“It’s simply wrong that we have hundreds of thousand of employees not getting paid for their work, wondering if they can get their bills paid,” Romney said. “The Democratic proposal certainly wasn’t as good, but it would have gotten the government open and that’s why I voted for it.”

The measure failed, as did a compromise plan proposed by Trump that would have included border wall funding as well as extended legal protections for “Dreamers.”

A group of Republicans are pushing for another attempt at a short term bill, but Trump is insisting it include some wall funding, which Democrats say they’ll block.

McConnell is expected to address the Senate chamber some time after noon Friday.

Republicans said the Thursday meeting with Pence left them without any solid idea what Trump would be willing to sign.

Trump has signaled he may resort to using a national emergency declaration to pay for a border wall, a move that would circumvent Congress and allow him to sign spending bills that do not include border wall money.

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