US Democrats swept back to power in the House of Representatives with veteran Nancy Pelosi at the helm, but they have come face to face with what may be a new divided government normal in Washington: Legislative gridlock.
US Democrats swept back to power on Thursday in the House of Representatives with veteran Nancy Pelosi at the helm, but they came face to face with what may be a new divided government normal in Washington: Legislative gridlock.
After a historic opening session of the 116th Congress in which Pelosi was elected as speaker for the second time in her storied career, lawmakers took aim at a bipartisan priority of ending an embarrassing partial government shutdown that was stretching into its 13th day.
The House passed two measures that would re-open government agencies whose funding had lapsed, but provide no money for a border wall demanded by Donald Trump.
READ: Nancy Pelosi elected speaker, will lead Democrats confronting Trump
They are all but dead on arrival in the Senate, where the Republican leadership has vowed not to bring them up for a vote because they do not pass muster with the president.
Trump has demanded that Congress approve $5.6bn for construction of a wall on the southern US border with Mexico – an oft repeated pledge from his 2016 presidential campaign.
