New York Times columnist Ezra Klein said on his podcast Sunday that Democrats should consider forcing a government shutdown to oppose President Donald Trump.
Klein opened "The Ezra Klein Show" by noting that government funding is set to expire at the end of the month, raising the possibility of another partial shutdown.
Earlier this year, progressive House Democrats urged Senate colleagues to block funding, but Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., ultimately supported a continuing resolution and encouraged colleagues to follow.
"If you had forced me to choose, I would have said Schumer was probably right. It wasn’t the time for a shutdown — in part because Democrats weren’t prepared to win one," Klein said. "But the bill that passed back in March funding the government runs out at the end of this month. And so we’re facing the question again: Should Senate Democrats partner with Senate Republicans to fund this government? I don’t see how they can."
U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., faced backlash from progressive members of his party after supporting a continuing resolution to fund the government in March. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Klein claimed that with Trump in what he called the "authoritarian consolidation stage of his presidency," the Democratic Party would be guilty of complicity if it allowed government funding to continue.
"I want to be very clear about what I am saying here. Donald Trump is corrupting the government — he is using it to hound his enemies, to line his pockets and to entrench his own power. He is corrupting it the way the Mafia would corrupt the industries it controlled. You could still, under Mafia rule, get the trash picked up or buy construction materials. But the point of those industries had become the preservation and expansion of the Mafia’s power and wealth," Klein said.
He added, "This is what Trump is doing to the government. This is what Democrats cannot fund. This is what they have to try to stop."
CHUCK SCHUMER DRAWS IRE OF DEMOCRATS, LIBERAL MEDIA VOICES AFTER VOTING TO AVERT SHUTDOWN
Ezra Klein suggested that a government shutdown might be preferable to Democrats compromising with the Trump administration. (istock)
Klein acknowledged that he was not "absolutely sure" a shutdown would be a good strategy but concluded it might still be better than the party’s current approach.
"I am quite certain that this moment deserves real opposition — that Democrats, morally speaking, should not fund a government that Trump is turning into a tool of personal enrichment and power. But I am not certain that Democrats can win a shutdown — I am not certain that they have the leaders that they need. It is absolutely the case that Democrats could lose a shutdown, but whatever they’re doing right now, it’s not called winning," Klein said.
Fox News Digital reached out to the Democratic National Committee for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
Congressional Republicans will need Democratic support to pass a continuing resolution ahead of the Oct. 1 deadline. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
Congressional leaders face an Oct. 1 deadline to pass a continuing resolution to continue funding the government through the rest of the year. Senate Republicans will need Democratic votes to overcome a filibuster.