White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Wednesday that President Donald Trump has not yet taken a direct role in negotiations to end the partial government shutdown over Department of Homeland Security funding, but she called the Democrats' latest proposal "unserious."
The president "wants the government to be open," Leavitt said at a briefing that aired live on Newsmax and the free Newsmax2 streaming platform. "We've been engaged in good-faith negotiations with the Democrats.
"Last night, they sent over a counterproposal that frankly was very unserious, and we hope they get serious very soon because Americans are going to be impacted by this," she said.
Senate Democrats last week blocked a House-passed DHS appropriations bill for the current fiscal year after their demands for changes to immigration enforcement were not met.
Funding for immigration enforcement efforts was set through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. However, the shutdown has halted funding for other DHS components, including the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Coast Guard, the Secret Service, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, and the Transportation Security Administration.
Leavitt said that Trump "hasn't had any direct conversation or correspondence" with leading Democrats, but "it doesn't mean he's not willing to. I'm just not aware of any conversations that have taken place."
"I do know the White House and the president's representatives have been in direct conversations with both Democrats and Republicans," she said.
"But of course, Democrats are the reason that the Department of Homeland Security is currently shut down. They have chosen to act against the American people for political reasons.
"And now we have FEMA workers, the men and women of the United States Coast Guard, men and women of TSA who keep our airports moving, who will be working without paychecks for no good reason other than the Democrats wanting to pick a fight with Donald Trump, and the president thinks that is irresponsible and despicable."
Democrats have said they will not support DHS funding unless 10 policy demands are met.
Those include requiring court-issued warrants for certain enforcement actions, clearer identification requirements for DHS officers, new use-of-force standards, and a ban on racial profiling.
They argue the changes are necessary after the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens, one of them a protester, last month in encounters with federal law enforcement in Minneapolis.
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Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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