President Biden summoned all four congressional leaders to the White House on Tuesday as the federal government looks ahead to a partial shutdown this weekend.
The President will be represented by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-D.), Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-R.), and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-Ky.). Convene a meeting with the Secretary of State (Dennessy). , to discuss ongoing negotiations over how to fund the government, which appear to have stalled in recent days.
Mr. Johnson and Mr. Schumer were expected to announce some kind of agreement on Sunday to provide funding to government agencies and departments whose current funding expires on March 1. The remaining funds will expire on March 8th.
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President Biden convened Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer to meet at the White House. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images | Anna Rose Leyden/Getty Images | Craig Hudson/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
However, no compromise was announced over the weekend. Instead, Mr. Johnson and Mr. Schumer issued public statements blaming the other side for the delay.
Johnson’s office confirmed to Fox News Digital that he has accepted Biden’s invitation and will visit the White House on Tuesday.
This comes after the chairman accused Senate Democrats of making last-minute demands in government spending negotiations. In a statement to Fox News Digital Sunday night, he said that “many of the issues that are still being discussed are coming from new demands from Democrats that the Senate Appropriations Committee has not included in the fiscal year 2024 spending bill. ” he said.
“With a divided government, Senate Democrats are trying to spend at this late stage on priorities even further to the left than what Congress has agreed to,” Johnson said.
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Prime Minister Johnson has been calling for a meeting with Biden for several weeks. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
A person familiar with the negotiations told Fox News Digital that one of the main delays involves the Supplemental Nutrition Benefits Program for Low-Income Women, Infants and Children Under 5, known as WIC. Told. Senate Democrats are seeking $7 billion for the program, the person said, which is more than the $6 billion proposed by House Republicans and the $6.3 billion requested by Mr. Biden.
Schumer’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the WIC issue or the White House meeting.
In a letter to colleagues on Sunday, Senate Democratic leaders placed the blame squarely on House Republicans for the delays and possible shutdown.
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Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who has been behind much of the negotiations, was also asked to attend the White House meeting. (Getty Images)
“Unfortunately, extreme House Republicans have shown they are more likely to cause chaos than pass legislation,” Schumer said.
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“In the face of a devastating government shutdown that is hurting our economy and threatening the safety of American families, we sincerely hope that Speaker Johnson will once again stand up to the extremists in his caucus and do the right thing. We had hoped that House Republicans would need more time to sort themselves out to have a bill ready this weekend that would give lawmakers enough time to consider the text. It’s obvious.”
If a deal is not reached on new federal funding or an extension of current levels by March 1, the government will be forced into a partial shutdown.
Fox News Digital reached out to the White House and the offices of Schumer, McConnell and Jeffries for comment, but did not immediately receive a response.
