Trump, Democrats Clash in White House Meeting over Government Shutdown
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: The president says he's willing to take full ownership of a government shutdown. How does that sit with you?</s>SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R-KY), SENATE MAJORITY LEADER: Well, I hope that's not where we end up. I understand it was a rather spirited meeting that we all watched. But I'd still like to see a smooth ending here and I haven't given up hope that that's what we'll have.</s>BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Spirited. Spirited. That's one way to describe it. A contentious Oval Office photo-op with Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi turned out to be quite the standoff today with the president. The Democratic leaders are pushing back on border wall funding as they try to ward off a government shutdown in 10 days, and they are far apart. You have Leader Pelosi and Senator Schumer offering up $1.3 billion for border security, but it's the president who says he wants the full $5 billion for his wall.</s>SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY), SENATE MINORITY LEADER: None of us have said --</s>DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: You want to know something --</s>SCHUMER: You've said it.</s>TRUMP: I'll take it. You know what I'll say? Yes, if we don't get what we want, one way or the other, whether it's through you, through military, through anything you want to call, I will shut down the government.</s>SCHUMER: OK, fair enough.</s>TRUMP: We disagree. We disagree.</s>TRUMP: And I am proud to shut down the government for border security, Chuck, because the people of this country don't want criminals and people that have lots of problems and drugs pouring into our country. So I will take the mantel. I will be the one to shut it down. I'm not going to blame you for it. The last time you shut it down, it didn't work. I will take the mantle of shutting down.</s>TRUMP: And I'm going to shut it down for border security.</s>BALDWIN: Moments later Schumer and Pelosi said this outside the White House.</s>SCHUMER: The president made clear that he wants a shutdown. His position, if he sticks to his position for a $5 billion wall, he will get no wall and he will get a shutdown.</s>REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), HOUSE MINORITY LEADER: Unfortunately, that the president choose to shut down a government, that we have a Trump shutdown as a Christmas present, a holiday present to the American people.</s>BALDWIN: Nadeam Elshami is the former chief of staff for Nancy Pelosi and is a CNN political commentator. Nadeam, nice to see you. You know Nancy Pelosi better than most. Thought bubble above her head? Go.</s>NADEAM ELSHAMI, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Oh, boy, he really lost control of this meeting, that's what's going through her head. The second thing going through her head is, he doesn't have the votes to even pass the $5 billion in the House. Certainly she's looking at him and thinking, Mr. President, we're offering you a way out and you're saying no to both of them. You're shutting down the government and we're not.</s>BALDWIN: I was listening to Phil Mattingly on Capitol Hill. He was saying the congressional aides sort of expected something like this, some version of the Trump show. Oh, hold on one second. We've got Chuck Schumer, Senator Schumer speaking now on the Hill.</s>SCHUMER: We gave suggestions that would keep the government open. It's his choice to accept one of these options or shut the government down. You heard the president. He wants a shutdown. He said, quote, "I'm proud to shut down the government." I'm going to read his quote, if any of you happened to miss it: "I am proud to shut down the government for border security, Chuck, so I'll take the mantel. I'll be the one to shut it down. I'm not going to blame you for it." That's what he said, plain and simple. No president should ever say he would be proud to shut the government down. Let me repeat that. No president should ever say that he would be proud to shut the government down. He's clinging to his position of billions of dollars for a wall. President Trump's position will not result in a wall but instead it will result in a Trump shutdown. The president has called for a shutdown at least 20 times since he came into --</s>BALDWIN: So, Nadeam, again, you have Senator Schumer reiterating what he heard from the president, something that I'm sure Republicans are doing a little, oh, why did he say that, right? Democrats are going to be playing that and reminding everyone on loop that the president of the United States said I'll take the mantel.</s>ELSHAMI: That's exactly right. The president tried to set a trap for Democrats, he was going to bring them into the Oval Office and bring in the cameras and say, Democrats, you should pass this or I'm going to get this done. If not, I'll shutdown the government. It back fired on him. He looked like he was not in control, like he didn't have the votes. Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi are experienced. This just showed why someone like Pelosi needs to be in charge of the House Democrats. She stood up to the president. The president didn't really have much to say to that. This was unbelievable. It was astonishing. I've never experienced anything like this in public. I've been in meetings with the speaker and the leader at times with President Obama and even with President Trump and it gets heated at times and they push back, but nothing, nothing like this.</s>BALDWIN: But how much of it was a show, Nadeam? And I don't mean just the president but the two Democratic leaders.</s>ELSHAMI: The two Democrats really wanted to go in and get this negotiation moving. They want to clear the decks before they start the next Congress. You go through the dance of, you know, we're going to have a productive meeting, we're going to talk about border security, we're going to talk about funding the government, we're going to look for bipartisan solutions to get this thing done, and then behind closed doors you do your business. I think Leader Pelosi and Leader Schumer were surprised by how the president proceeded. Look, I've been -- I've seen it before where, you know, someone says something, including a president, President Trump says something that is incorrect, you know, the speaker designate is not going to let it pass. She just doesn't.</s>BALDWIN: It's so rare that it's all caught on camera.</s>ELSHAMI: Absolutely.</s>BALDWIN: With that, Nadeam Elshami, good to see you.</s>ELSHAMI: Thank you.</s>BALDWIN: Thank you very much for your perspective.</s>ELSHAMI: Thank you.</s>BALDWIN: Coming up, why is Russia sending bombers to Venezuela? The U.S. is furious over this move. This as concerns grow over Vladimir Putin's plan. Plus, a case that is sparking outrage on so many levels. A former college fraternity president accused of sexual assault gets a sweetheart deal. You'll hear the survivor's words for the court.