Lame-Duck Shutdown or Stopgap Bill? Are Dems Delaying?

As the 2020 presidential election looms in the near future, we see political maneuvers being tested to sway the outcome or to stall until the results are revealed before making necessary decisions. Now the Democrats are distraught with uncertainty over whether to pass a stopgap budget bill or allow a government shutdown – and the quandary centers around who will win the election.

Congress has until Sept. 30 to make a decision. A GOP-supported stopgap bill, also known as a continuing resolution (CR), would allow for current funding to continue and prevent a shutdown before the election. Obviously, a shutdown, among all the other trials in America being blamed on President Donald Trump, would further agitate voters and might be a ploy to get a few more votes thrown toward Joe Biden.

If a longer term financial arrangement could be hammered out before the Sept. 30 deadline, that would eliminate both a lame-duck shutdown and the need for a CR. However, the imminent election poses a risk that politicians who may lose their seats will also lose their votes on the budget. This seems to be the sticking point for some Democrats. As Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) said:

“We’ve gone back and forth, it’s a split decision in the caucus. If you can tell us what happens Nov. 3 it is a lot easier … The uncertainty about the presidential election is an element.”

In other words, it’s not what’s best for the country and her people; it’s what’s best for the party. Holding funding hostage until next year means Democrats may be able to get more of their agenda passed should voting go in their favor. Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) thinks using the lame-duck approach would be beneficial. “I think we could get a good package done in the lame duck,” he said. “I’m never a fan of CRs in general and not a fan of long CRs. I’d like to believe we could use the lame duck to write a good budget.”

However, no one is committing to a timeline as of yet. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) said, “We are now looking at anomalies in the rest, and we’ll figure out the timing when we do,” while Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) added that they were “discussing what time the CR should go to and we haven’t formulated our position yet.”

As Liberty Nation’s Managing Editor Mark Angelides pointed out, “How is this not proof that they are using legislation as electioneering?” The left is taking advantage of every issue it can get its hands on, demonstrated already by the outlandish conditions placed in the Coronavirus stimulus bills, while Americans suffer from lost jobs and businesses. A government shutdown taking place a month before the presidential election might be the latest partisan effort against the people, the president, and the system.

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Read more from Kelli Ballard.