The president wanted the Senate minority leader to visit the White House to discuss his demands for the border wall, which would need Democratic votes to pass the GOP-controlled Senate. Previously, Schumer had held one-on-one negotiations with Trump. But this time, the New York Democrat had a new condition: “Only with Nancy.”
“We do it all together, that’s an agreement we had from the get-go,” Schumer said of his stance with Speaker Nancy Pelosi on not giving Trump an inch on the wall…
And by setting a model of unity, Schumer and Pelosi have also kept moderates in their caucus from breaking ranks and underscored how difficult it will be for Trump to get Democrats to fold. From House freshmen in Trump-held districts to centrist Senate Democrats like Joe Manchin of West Virginia, they’ve all said: Open the government, then let’s talk about the border.
