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President Donald Trump on Tuesday abruptly canceled a scheduled White House meeting with Democratic leaders, saying he will not sit down with them until they “become realistic” in the escalating fight over government funding.
The move comes with a shutdown deadline of Oct. 1 looming and both parties deadlocked over how to keep federal agencies open.
Earlier in the day, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries confirmed that a meeting was set to take place this week in the Oval Office. But Trump took to Truth Social hours later to call it off.
“After reviewing the details of the unserious and ridiculous demands being made by the Minority Radical Left Democrats in return for their Votes to keep our thriving Country open, I have decided that no meeting with their Congressional Leaders could possibly be productive,” Trump wrote.
Competing Proposals Fail in Senate
Last week, the House passed a stopgap measure to extend government funding until Nov. 21, which also included new money for lawmaker security following the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
Democrats countered with their own plan to fund the government until Oct. 31, while also making permanent the enhanced Affordable Care Act tax credits first approved under President Joe Biden. Their bill also sought to reverse Medicaid cuts and restore funding to public radio and TV that Trump had eliminated earlier this year.
Both bills failed in the Senate on Friday, raising fears of a lapse in funding.
Congress is now in recess, with the Senate not scheduled to return until next week. The House GOP leadership extended its recess beyond the deadline, insisting the Senate adopt their bill.
Democrats Fire Back
Schumer and Jeffries had urged Trump over the weekend to negotiate, warning that Democrats would not support what they called a “dirty spending bill” that ignores health care priorities. They announced Tuesday morning that Trump had agreed to meet — only to have the president reverse course within hours.
On X (formerly Twitter), Jeffries blasted the decision. “Trump Always Chickens Out,” he wrote. “The extremists want to shut down the government because they are unwilling to address the Republican healthcare crisis that is devastating America.”
Schumer added that Trump was “running away from the negotiating table before he even gets there.”
“While Americans face rising costs and a Republican healthcare crisis, Trump would rather throw a tantrum than do his job,” Schumer said. “Democrats are ready to work to avoid a shutdown — Trump and Republicans are holding America hostage. Donald Trump will own the shutdown.”
Trump, for his part, left the door open to talks — but only on his terms. “To the Leaders of the Democrat Party, the ball is in your court,” he wrote. “I look forward to meeting with you when you become realistic about the things that our Country stands for. DO THE RIGHT THING!”
