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WASHINGTON – They were so close.
As votes continued Wednesday night to fund the government until February, a group of Democrats sang Christmas carols in a corner of the Senate Chamber. Senator Jeff Flake, Republican of Arizona, commented on what he believed to be his last words in the congressional account. Everyone planned to go home for the holidays.
But a few hours later, President Trump torpedoed the Compromise Financing Bill, driving disaffected legislators out of their family in a final, partisan fight over what Mr. Trump called a barrier. artistic slats on the southern border – and the billions of dollars needed to build it. Once again, the Congress was at the heart of a series of chaotic events, a week that included a depressed purse, a sudden relapse of the Pentagon guard and the decision of the commander-in-chief to withdraw his troops from Syria and of Afghanistan. 19659002] Senator Bob Corker, outgoing Republican of Tennessee, could not help but laugh at the absurdity of theatricality. "You can not invent that kind of thing, you're all having fun," he told reporters on Thursday.
After a turbulent and emotionally charged year that began with a shutdown, it seemed normal that the last gasps of the 115th Congress were marked by a whiplash, a partisan finger-grip, and uncertainty. General.
"I like the Senate; it's a great place, "said Senator Orrin G. Hatch, Republican from Utah, who is retiring after more than four decades in the Senate. "It's amazing that the country has all survived us."
"It's wild, is not it?"
From Hawaii and Texas, senators and members of the House hastened to return Friday for a meeting at the White House and possible votes later in the day. Sen. John Cornyn, Texas Republican, flew early in the morning, while Senator Brian Schatz, Democrat from Hawaii, spent about 20 minutes with his family before an eleven-hour return flight for Washington.
Senator John Thune of South Dakota, the Republican whip, told reporters. "A lot of things are happening."
M. Corker, visibly moved by the discussions on his last vote on Wednesday, did not leave
On Friday, he snuggled against his Senate colleagues and postponed the vote on a spending measure passed by the Room for more than five hours. for negotiations to continue and for colleagues to arrive from the airport.
Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa, contrasts with the ceremony that took place at the White House for the signing of the bipartisan bill on the criminal justice system. intact. ("Get out of here, Chuck, go, go," said Mr. Trump before giving him a pen.)
The overtime clock being frozen a little before 100 minutes, a record was established more than five hours later. The longest recorded vote in the recent history of the Senate.
Surprised tourists from the Capitol Rotunda redirected their cell phone cameras into a chaotic group of reporters and a safety officer chased away from Vice President Mike Pence and other officials of the company. administration while they were participating in negotiations across the Capitol.
"I keep thinking of John McCain, who would remind us that" when it's really dark here, remember: it's going to get very dark after, "said Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski of the United States. In the meantime, reporters wondered if the rainbow briefly visible from the senate platform was a sign.)
Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the chief majority, waiting for the arrival of the last senators, showed a campaign button for the "Senate Cranky Coalition. "
" This is the biggest part of my lecture at the moment, he said.
He wore the button when he was talking to the Senate, chuckling as he indicated the number of amendments that had been rejected. Round trip between the two rooms.
The Capitol Lounge, a favorite haunt of Hill's employees, has begun distributing a menu of stop-themed drinks, which is expected to take effect Saturday at 12:01 pm.
But there was also a sense of nostalgia and finality that permeated the empty corridors as the chances of saving a compromise diminished. Capitol employees had begun transporting Christmas trees, naked members wrapped in plastic, in recycling bins in members' offices.
Texas representative Kevin Brady is expected to hand over his chair of the House Ways and Means Committee in two weeks. stained on his knees, cell phone in hand, in front of the imposing wooden doors that lead to his office, just steps from the bedroom of the House.
"It's good, he says, to have a picture."
And a guide stopped to propose an addendum to the plaque over the president's desk located just outside the rotunda, occupied by Paul D. Ryan, the Wisconsin Republican, who retires after the loss of the majority of the House by the Democratic Party.
"The next year, said the guide, she will indicate Nancy Pelosi.
"The Clock Turned"
When Mr. McConnell introduced the bill on short-term spending on Wednesday, a bipartisan group of Western Senators saw a fleeting chance to ensure a vote on
"I knew time was of the essence," said Senator Steve Daines, Republican of Montana. "The clock was turning."
Mr. Daines and other senators rushed down the halls to make sure the package was supportive, ricocheting through the offices and committee hearings.
as he chaired the Senate. He then took the hammer for 45 minutes so that Mr. Lee – who finally blocked the vote by postponing it to January – can decipher the bill.
While they were working all night, Democrats began to sing through the classics: "Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer" and "Little Drummer Boy", among others.
As a sign of approval, Mr. Flake announced the end of the vote to approve the bill on limited spending with the words "Rudolph, responding present. "
" It's a strange scene, "said Mr. Flake afterward. "Are you hammering them? Is it against the rules? Am I going to be Grinch? "
" There was no strategy "
There was still hope when the day began Thursday.
Some Republicans in the House, coming out of their meeting conference, were very optimistic.When asked if there was any doubt about the fact that the president would sign the same Senate spending bill without a $ 5 billion for a border wall, the representative Chris Collins, Republican of New York, replied, "There is no doubt."
before the president calls Mr. Ryan, interrupting the process by requiring funds for the border wall to be included in the funding bill.
"It is clear that this was not well thought out, that there was no strategy, that reacted to the comments of some right-wing media," said representative Carlos Curbelo, a Republican of the Outgoing Florida,
The representative of Indiana Democrat, Joe Donnelly, then told the press that conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh "We had a whiplash crisis, we are all back here." [19659038]
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