Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) said Wednesday that President Donald Trump is the wrong leader for the moment, pointing to Trump's own past comments during earlier shutdown showdowns as evidence that presidents, not Congress, bear ultimate responsibility when the government closes.
Warren Points To Trump's Past Shutdown Comments
On X, Warren wrote, "I agree with Donald Trump. Trump is not the right leader for his moment." She added an image strip that mentions her saying, "Donald Trump today should take a hint from Donald Trump yesterday," arguing he should accept blame for the current shutdown.
Warren cited Trump's 2011 interview on NBC's "Today" show, when he said of a looming shutdown under President Barack Obama. "In my opinion, I hear the Democrats are gonna be blamed, I hear Republicans are gonna be blamed, I actually think the president would be blamed… If there is a shutdown … I think it would be a tremendously negative mark on the president of the United States. He's the one that has to get people together," Trump said at the time.
In 2013, as murmurs of another closure unfolded, Trump made a similar point on Fox News, saying people would remember "the president of the United States" for a shutdown and that "the pressure is on the president."
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Democrats, for their part, say Republicans engineered the standoff and accuse Trump of refusing to negotiate in good faith.
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The clash highlights a familiar Washington pattern of presidents and their opponents trading blame while federal services stall and workers brace for uncertainty, even as past statements resurface to test today's talking points.
Photo courtesy: Sheila Fitzgerald / Shutterstock.com
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