Back from a week abroad, President Donald Trump threw himself into the shutdown debate, calling on the Senate to scrap the filibuster and reopen the Government, an idea swiftly rejected Friday by Republican leaders who have long opposed such a move. Trump pushed his Republican Party to get rid of the Senate rule that requires 60 votes to overcome objections and gives the minority Democrats a check on GOP power. In the chamber that's currently split, 53-47, Democrats have had enough votes to keep the government closed while they demand an extension of health care subsidies. Neither party has seriously wanted to nuke the rule. “the choice is clear — initiate the nuclear option,' get rid of the filibuster,” Trump said in a late night social media post Thursday.
Trump's sudden decision to assert himself into the shutdown now in its 31st day — bringing the highly charged demand to end the filibuster — is certain to set the Senate on edge. It could spur senators toward their own compromise or send the chamber spiralling toward a new sense of crisis. Republican leaders responded quickly, and unequivocally, setting themselves at odds with Trump, the president few have dared to counter. Senate Majority Leader John Thune has repeatedly said he is not considering changing the rules to end the shutdown.
