The dog and pony show continues.
White House budget director Mick Mulvaney said Sunday there’s a chance the shutdown could end Monday or Senate Democrats will ensure the federal government remains closed until President Trump is due to deliver his first State of the Union.
“I really do believe that at heart here there was an interest by some folks in the Democratic Party to deny the president sort of the victory lap of the anniversary of his inauguration, the chance to talk about that success of the tax bill, success with the economy and jobs,” Mulvaney told “Fox News Sunday.” “And I think if they get over that, there’s a chance this thing gets done before 9 a.m. on Monday.”
“There are other Democrats who want to see the president give the State of the Union during the shutdown,” he said, ahead of the address scheduled for Jan. 30.
Mulvaney insisted Trump wanted to resolve issues with the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, saying a fix could be agreed upon in three weeks.
But he slammed Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer for not putting solutions to disagreements over the proposed southern border wall, full border security funding, chain migration and the visa lottery system on the negotiating table.