Trump Makes Deal A Priority Over Party
President’s willingness to negotiate with Democrats show he emphasizes legislative progress over Republican alliances.
By Kristina Peterson and Rebecca Ballhaus
The Wall Street Journal
September 14, 2017
President Donald Trump’s negotiation toward a second agreement with congressional Democrats in a week confirmed his willingness to partner with Democrats to push his legislative agenda and further muddled the political calculus on Capitol Hill.
The emerging immigration deal Mr. Trump closed in on with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.) over dinner at the White House Wednesday night made clear that Mr. Trump is prioritizing legislative progress and momentum over party alliance. The Democrats said the outlines of a deal were in place; the White House called the talks “constructive” but said no agreement had been reached.
The new dynamic left congressional Republicans uncertain how Mr. Trump would act in the coming push to overhaul the tax code, as well as the expected fight when the government’s current funding expires in early December.
After an August recess marked by frequent barbs from Mr. Trump aimed at Republican lawmakers, Congress returned to Washington this month to find a president far more eager to work with Democrats after lambasting them as “obstructionist” earlier in the year. Since his return, the president has sided with the opposing party on a proposal to raise the government’s borrowing limit for just three months, signaled he wants a bipartisan approach to tax reform, and invited more than a dozen Democratic lawmakers to the White House just this week.
Still, Wednesday night’s agreement marked less of an undermining of congressional GOP leaders than the previous week’s accord, when Mr. Trump overrode the objections of his own Treasury secretary and a group of GOP leaders in a meeting in the Oval Office to strike the short-term deal on the debt limit.
Mrs. Pelosi and Mr. Schumer said Wednesday night they had agreed with Mr. Trump to give legal status to undocumented immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children, along with an increase in border security—largely tracking what House Speaker Paul Ryan (R., Wis.) had called for as recently as Wednesday morning. Mr. Ryan didn’t comment on the agreement Wednesday night.
Democrats have said their ability to unify their rank-and-file has helped boost their leverage in discussions with Mr. Trump. Mr. Ryan acknowledged that the intraparty divisions within the GOP have weakened his negotiating firepower.
“Yeah, that does affect us, “ Mr. Ryan said in an interview with the Associated Press streamed live Wednesday. When “I don’t have 218 votes, it’s hard for me to drive good bargains.”
If lawmakers can quickly finalize an immigration deal, it would help Republicans avoid a divisive issue during primary season. Mr. Trump’s six-month deadline for Congress to address the deportation question meant the emotionally charged issue could have been voted on next spring ahead of congressional elections in November. Many Republicans had already suggested they would be open to a deal similar to what was emerging Wednesday night.
The deal raises questions about the president and his relationship with his conservative base. During the campaign, he energized supporters in part by emphasizing his willingness to adopt hard-line stances, such as his promise to rescind deportation protections as soon as he took office, while portraying rivals as weak on immigration.
Some Trump supporters were already complaining that the president hadn’t vowed to veto any bill that included “amnesty” for the so-called Dreamers.
“Unbelievable!” Rep. Steve King (R., Iowa) tweeted in reply to one of Mr. Trump’s tweets on Wednesday night. “Amnesty is a pardon for immigration law breakers coupled with the reward of the objective of their crime.”
Newsmax Chief Executive Chris Ruddy, a friend of Mr. Trump’s, predicted the president would be criticized in conservative media outlets, such as Breitbart News, which is run by Steve Bannon, the president’s former chief strategist.
But Mr. Ruddy said that would even out if Mr. Trump could secure a robust border security plan with Democrats.
“Steve and Breitbart folks will go bananas,” Mr. Ruddy said late Wednesday. “If the deal is as it seems, the president is really giving up little but he will get a much more strengthened border package with Democratic support. Support from the Republican base for the president is rock solid, that won’t change.”
Breitbart’s website on Wednesday evening bore the headline “Amnesty Don” and said Mr. Trump had “signaled a full-fledged cave” on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA.
One person close to the president characterized Mr. Trump’s renewed efforts with Democrats partly as revenge against Mr. Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.), who have sought to distance themselves from the White House at times in recent months and have been critical of the president on some issues. Mr. Trump also felt misled by GOP leaders, who assured him during the transition that he could count on the quick passage of a health-care bill, a White House official said.
But the person close to the president also said Mr. Trump, a one-time Democrat who came to Washington without deep Republican party loyalties, is intent on notching some legislative victories and has seen in the first eight months of his presidency that Republicans haven’t been able to deliver on that front.
Mr. Trump also faces fewer competing voices within his own White House. This summer saw the departure of several top aides, most notably Mr. Bannon, his chief strategist, and former chief of staff Reince Priebus. Mr. Priebus’s replacement, retired Gen. John Kelly, has sought to install better protocols in the White House and has ordered top aides to stay in their respective lanes, including allowing the legislative affairs team to operate without outside interference.
Wednesday night’s deal suggested that Congress, which traditionally waits until the 11th hour to pass contentious legislation, could begin acting well in advance of its deadline with Mr. Trump driving to cut deals.
Lawmakers had widely expected over the summer to be fighting over the government funding right up until its Sept. 30 deadline, and many were astonished to have struck a deal last week extending it, along with hurricane relief and a suspension of the debt limit through Dec. 8. The latest deal suggests Mr. Trump and lawmakers may hammer out an immigration compromise well ahead of the March 5 date when the program shielding young immigrants from deportation would have ended absent congressional action.
President Donald Trump’s negotiation toward a second agreement with congressional Democrats in a week confirmed his willingness to partner with Democrats to push his legislative agenda and further muddled the political calculus on Capitol Hill.
The emerging immigration deal Mr. Trump closed in on with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.) over dinner at the White House Wednesday night made clear that Mr. Trump is prioritizing legislative progress and momentum over party alliance. The Democrats said the outlines of a deal were in place; the White House called the talks “constructive” but said no agreement had been reached.
The new dynamic left congressional Republicans uncertain how Mr. Trump would act in the coming push to overhaul the tax code, as well as the expected fight when the government’s current funding expires in early December.
After an August recess marked by frequent barbs from Mr. Trump aimed at Republican lawmakers, Congress returned to Washington this month to find a president far more eager to work with Democrats after lambasting them as “obstructionist” earlier in the year. Since his return, the president has sided with the opposing party on a proposal to raise the government’s borrowing limit for just three months, signaled he wants a bipartisan approach to tax reform, and invited more than a dozen Democratic lawmakers to the White House just this week.
Still, Wednesday night’s agreement marked less of an undermining of congressional GOP leaders than the previous week’s accord, when Mr. Trump overrode the objections of his own Treasury secretary and a group of GOP leaders in a meeting in the Oval Office to strike the short-term deal on the debt limit.
Mrs. Pelosi and Mr. Schumer said Wednesday night they had agreed with Mr. Trump to give legal status to undocumented immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children, along with an increase in border security—largely tracking what House Speaker Paul Ryan (R., Wis.) had called for as recently as Wednesday morning. Mr. Ryan didn’t comment on the agreement Wednesday night.
Democrats have said their ability to unify their rank-and-file has helped boost their leverage in discussions with Mr. Trump. Mr. Ryan acknowledged that the intraparty divisions within the GOP have weakened his negotiating firepower.
“Yeah, that does affect us, “ Mr. Ryan said in an interview with the Associated Press streamed live Wednesday. When “I don’t have 218 votes, it’s hard for me to drive good bargains.”
If lawmakers can quickly finalize an immigration deal, it would help Republicans avoid a divisive issue during primary season. Mr. Trump’s six-month deadline for Congress to address the deportation question meant the emotionally charged issue could have been voted on next spring ahead of congressional elections in November. Many Republicans had already suggested they would be open to a deal similar to what was emerging Wednesday night.
The deal raises questions about the president and his relationship with his conservative base. During the campaign, he energized supporters in part by emphasizing his willingness to adopt hard-line stances, such as his promise to rescind deportation protections as soon as he took office, while portraying rivals as weak on immigration.
Some Trump supporters were already complaining that the president hadn’t vowed to veto any bill that included “amnesty” for the so-called Dreamers.
“Unbelievable!” Rep. Steve King (R., Iowa) tweeted in reply to one of Mr. Trump’s tweets on Wednesday night. “Amnesty is a pardon for immigration law breakers coupled with the reward of the objective of their crime.”
Newsmax Chief Executive Chris Ruddy, a friend of Mr. Trump’s, predicted the president would be criticized in conservative media outlets, such as Breitbart News, which is run by Steve Bannon, the president’s former chief strategist.
But Mr. Ruddy said that would even out if Mr. Trump could secure a robust border security plan with Democrats.
“Steve and Breitbart folks will go bananas,” Mr. Ruddy said late Wednesday. “If the deal is as it seems, the president is really giving up little but he will get a much more strengthened border package with Democratic support. Support from the Republican base for the president is rock solid, that won’t change.”
Breitbart’s website on Wednesday evening bore the headline “Amnesty Don” and said Mr. Trump had “signaled a full-fledged cave” on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA.
One person close to the president characterized Mr. Trump’s renewed efforts with Democrats partly as revenge against Mr. Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.), who have sought to distance themselves from the White House at times in recent months and have been critical of the president on some issues. Mr. Trump also felt misled by GOP leaders, who assured him during the transition that he could count on the quick passage of a health-care bill, a White House official said.
But the person close to the president also said Mr. Trump, a one-time Democrat who came to Washington without deep Republican party loyalties, is intent on notching some legislative victories and has seen in the first eight months of his presidency that Republicans haven’t been able to deliver on that front.
Mr. Trump also faces fewer competing voices within his own White House. This summer saw the departure of several top aides, most notably Mr. Bannon, his chief strategist, and former chief of staff Reince Priebus. Mr. Priebus’s replacement, retired Gen. John Kelly, has sought to install better protocols in the White House and has ordered top aides to stay in their respective lanes, including allowing the legislative affairs team to operate without outside interference.
Wednesday night’s deal suggested that Congress, which traditionally waits until the 11th hour to pass contentious legislation, could begin acting well in advance of its deadline with Mr. Trump driving to cut deals.
Lawmakers had widely expected over the summer to be fighting over the government funding right up until its Sept. 30 deadline, and many were astonished to have struck a deal last week extending it, along with hurricane relief and a suspension of the debt limit through Dec. 8. The latest deal suggests Mr. Trump and lawmakers may hammer out an immigration compromise well ahead of the March 5 date when the program shielding young immigrants from deportation would have ended absent congressional action.
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