Senator Ed Markey says Democrats ready to negotiate as possible government shutdown looms
Massachusetts Senator Ed Markey said that Democrats are ready to negotiate with Republicans as a government shutdown looms.
"Trump and the Republicans do not have to shut down our government. Keep those programs, Medicaid, Affordable Care Act, NIH research, sacred and protected, and Trump is unwilling to sit down and negotiate over those issues, and I will not vote for any budget that does not protect the healthcare of the citizens of Massachusetts and our country," Markey said.
President Trump had originally canceled a meeting with Democratic leaders earlier in the week, saying that they had "unserious and ridiculous demands" in a post on Truth Social. Mr. Trump allegedly agreed to a meeting for Monday with leaders of the Senate and House, sources told CBS News.
Representative Seth Moulton said that they are doing everything to keep the government open and have a bipartisan dialogue.
"There is a lot of uncertainty in the economy right now. A lot of businesses don't know what to invest because the tariff pictures change overnight. They don't know what the future holds, and a lot of consumers are concerned about whether they can spend money right now," Representative Seth Moulton said.
A shutdown would cost the U.S. government around $7 billion a week and tens of thousands of federal workers could be laid off if a deal is not reached by September 30, according to a White House plan. It would also halt pay for hundreds of thousands of federal workers, including those at the Bunker Hill monument in Boston.
One tourist visiting the monument said that she and her husband would be in favor of a shutdown.
"There needs to be a course correction. There are liberties being taken with our government that shouldn't be taken, and if a government shutdown can help remedy that," one woman said while visiting Bunker Hill.
Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid would not be impacted by the shutdown. The USPS and the Transportation Security Administration would also continue running as normal. For more information about what economists say could be impacted by the shutdown, click here.