It Is Happening Every Day, Every Where
Privately, many Senate Democrats conceded that their leader was doing his job by protecting his members from a tough vote and making a politically painful decision. But the backlash from his party was intense.
An afternoon vote was expected to clear the way for a Republican-written bill to keep government funding flowing past midnight after the top Senate Democrat said he would not block it.
President Trump said Chuck Schumer was not “Jewish anymore” in comments that have been widely criticized as offensive.
The top Senate Democrat said his members were not ready to provide the votes to allow the Republican-written stopgap spending measure to pass ahead of a March 14 midnight deadline.
Progressive and moderate Democrats criticized a protest by Representative Al Green as a distraction, and the party leadership tried to refocus attention on economic issues.
Democrats argue that Elon Musk’s criticism of the program and push to squeeze savings from it is a prelude to benefit cuts. Republicans and President Trump say they plan no such thing.
Party leaders opted for a soberly delivered, centrist counter to the president’s speech, but the dominant image of Democratic pushback was a liberal congressman waving his cane in protest.
Many Democrats are taking guests who they say have been hurt by Elon Musk’s gutting of the federal bureaucracy. Several others will skip the speech and host counterprogramming, such as live fact-checking.
Ed Martin, the acting U.S. attorney in Washington, has been blocked so far in seeking a grand jury investigation into remarks made by Senator Chuck Schumer about Supreme Court justices.
Before adopting Republicans’ budget resolution, senators were engaging in an all-night parliamentary marathon that Democrats used to try to force the G.O.P. into politically damaging votes.