Washington — Vice President JD Vance on Sunday accused Democrats of “hostage-taking” with their posture within the authorities shutdown, as Democratic leaders in Congress have pushed for severe negotiations with Republican leaders and the White Home to finish the stalemate.
“We do not negotiate with an individual who has taken all the federal authorities hostage over a well being care coverage dispute,” Vance mentioned on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan.”
Twelve days into the federal government shutdown, Democrats and Republicans continued to commerce blame over the deadlock, with no clear decision in sight. As Senate Republican management has held repeat votes on a Home-passed measure to fund the federal government, trying to peel off help from throughout the aisle, Democrats have demanded an extension of expiring medical insurance tax credit as a situation for his or her help to reopen the federal government. And as Democrats name for negotiations within the funding struggle, Republican leaders say there’s nothing to barter.
When requested Sunday about Senate Minority Chief Chuck Schumer’s insistence that the stalemate would solely be solved by negotiations between congressional leaders and the White Home, Vance mentioned “this is not a deal-making, this is not a negotiation, that is hostage-taking.”
“If Chuck Schumer desires to come back into the Oval Workplace or come to my home, he’s welcome to speak about how you can repair well being care coverage for People,” Vance mentioned. “However you do not come into the Oval Workplace and say, ‘until you the President of the US give us all the pieces that I need, I will shut down the federal government.'”
Vance added, “we’ll negotiate over well being care coverage, however solely when you do your job and open up folks’s authorities.”
On the query of the medical insurance tax credit, Vance mentioned “we expect the tax credit really go to a number of waste and fraud throughout the insurance coverage trade, so we need to be sure that the tax credit go to the individuals who want them.”
“There’s a number of willingness to barter, a number of willingness to compromise from each the reasonable Democrats and positively from the White Home,” Vance mentioned. “But when the far-left Democrats, led by Chuck Schumer, are going to close down the federal government and refuse to open up the federal government until they get all the pieces they need, that is not a negotiation, that is a hostage-taking. And we’re not going to reward that sort of conduct from Washington, D.C.”
In the meantime on Friday, the White Home introduced that layoffs previewed earlier within the shutdown had begun, and the administration mentioned in a court docket submitting that seven businesses started issuing reduction-in-force notices to greater than 4,000 staff.
Vance mentioned the federal government is targeted on “guaranteeing important companies stay open” when requested how the administration is deciding who will get laid off. And he urged that “this isn’t a state of affairs that we’re enthusiastic about,” saying “we wish the federal government to reopen, however Chuck Schumer and the Democrats determined to close down the federal government, and we now have to take care of the implications within the administration, so that is what we’re doing.”
Pressed in regards to the layoffs, a few of which had been rescinded, Vance mentioned “the federal government shutdown inevitably results in some chaos.”
“We’re determining how you can take cash from some areas and provides it to different areas,” Vance mentioned. “That chaos is as a result of Schumer and the far-left Democrats shut down the federal government.”
On whether or not the layoffs can maintain as much as authorized scrutiny after two unions sued to dam the mass layoffs in the course of the shutdown, Vance mentioned, “we expect that we now have the authority to do what we have to do.”
“All these conversations about whether or not it is a short-term layoff or a everlasting layoff, we’re coping with a horrible, chaotic state of affairs as a result of Chuck Schumer and some far left Democrats determined to close down the federal government,” Vance mentioned. “If they simply be a part of with the reasonable Democrats and the overwhelming majority of Republicans, we will open up the federal government, and all these conversations will now not be crucial.”
Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut additionally appeared on “Face the Nation” on Sunday and mentioned Vance is “simply not residing in actuality.”
“There isn’t any negotiations occurring proper now, as a result of Republicans are boycotting these negotiations,” Murphy mentioned, arguing they’re doing so “as a result of they’re determined to lift premiums on folks on this nation by 75% with the intention to finance their tax minimize for the rich.”
Murphy mentioned “that is an emergency.”
“We’ve got a accountability on this upcoming price range to forestall catastrophe for households whose premiums are about to go up, and to handle the destruction of our democracy and the rule of legislation that is occurring throughout this nation,” Murphy mentioned. “These are pressing issues.”
