Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) said Sunday that she would support holding a Senate vote on bills passed in the House to reopen parts of the government unrelated to negotiations over funding for President Trump‘s wall along the southern border.
Collins said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that she understands Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is in a difficult spot because the president may not sign bills passed by the Democratic-held House, but pressed for a vote to reopen agencies like Agriculture, Interior, Transportation and Housing and Urban Development.
“I’m frustrated in the situation that we’ve gotten to this point where both sides appear to be intransigent,” Collins said. “It is not a sign of weakness to figure out a middle ground. I think that both sides need to indicate a willingness to listen and to compromise.”
WATCH: Chuck Todd asks Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) if it’s time for the White House to move forward on stalled shutdown negotiations. #MTP@SenatorCollins: “It is not a sign of weakness to try to figure out a middle ground” pic.twitter.com/aaNSLaMR58
— Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) January 6, 2019
Collins argued that Congress should pass appropriations bills before the end of the fiscal year to avoid the threat of a shutdown being used as a political weapon. – READ MORE