White House budget director Mick Mulvaney took the podium at Tuesday's press briefing to blast Democrats for pushing back on President Trump's "tremendous" budget proposal. "They wanted a shutdown," Mulvaney said of Democrats. "We know that. They were desperate to make this administration look like we couldn't function, like we couldn't govern."
Despite Democrats' bad behavior, Mulvaney claimed Trump "out-negotiated" them anyway. Mulvaney insisted the bill that Congress agreed on late Sunday to fund the government through September contains no "new money" for Puerto Rico, no renewable energy subsidies, and no "ObamaCare bailout money," all of which Democrats wanted. Unlike the Democrats, Mulvaney said Trump "delivered on his promises and got his priorities funded," including more money for defense, border security, and school choice. The bill does not include funding for a new border wall, among other priorities Trump had promised.
When pushed by reporters on why — if Democrats were the ones who wanted the shutdown — Trump tweeted earlier Tuesday that the country "needs a good 'shutdown' in September," Mulvaney dismissed the tweet as venting. Mulvaney suggested that Trump is "frustrated" with Democrats who "went out there to spike the football and make him look bad."
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Mulvaney warned that if Democrats "aren't going to behave any better" come September, when the funding bill expires, then a shutdown just might be "inevitable." Catch a snippet of Mulvaney's impassioned remarks below. Becca Stanek
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