Inside the frantic negotiations that failed to avert a shutdown

Schumer and the trio of Trump administration officials made some progress in a private meeting on a deal to fund the government and modestly boost border security funding. But it came too late. The Senate and House both adjourned relatively early in the evening, and congressional leaders are still hashing things out with the president and his top officials.

Lawmakers and aides in both parties are cautiously optimistic that the shutdown will be short, believing there’s an emerging consensus around a package of seven annual spending bills, including $1.6 billion in money for fencing. Everyone seems to realize that Trump’s dream of $5 billion for concrete wall funding is dead, including Trump himself. But nobody seems quite sure of what, exactly, Trump will sign after this week’s frenzied back and forth.

On Friday morning, Schumer and McConnell were barely talking. After all, they’d already struck a deal to continue government funding until Feb. 8, only to see Trump pull his support for the plan following the revolt by the House Freedom Caucus.