Can Trump Avoid a Government Shutdown?

Playbook: “If you hadn’t heard — or somehow forgot — the government shuts down in 10 days. And the conversation brewing at the top levels on Capitol Hill is: will Republicans be successful at forcing Trump to fulfill a campaign promise in this must-pass bill, or will Trump have to work with Democrats to keep government open? Government-funding bills are always tough these days, and conservatives are going to want to extract some blood in exchange for their vote. Options conservatives are buzzing about: border wall funding, stripping money from sanctuary cities, defunding Planned Parenthood. But Democrats have power here, and can exert it to force Trump to ditch his right flank, and advocate for a clean spending bill. That will be quite the political pickle for the president.”

“The House Freedom Caucus — which has the numbers to dictate the debate on the right — will brawl for border funding, in some shape or form. That’s unlikely to fly in the Senate.”