BUDGET/DEMS/GOP/NATURAL DISASTER/PUERTO RICO/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump received a ring from an unusual caller on Wednesday [4-3-19] evening: Democratic Sen. Doug Jones. The vulnerable Alabama Democrat urged Trump to accept more money for Puerto Rico as a way to unstick a $13 billion disaster aid bill that’s stalled in the Senate. But Trump so far has been unmoved by pleas from both Democrats and Republicans…Democrats blocked a GOP plan earlier this week because they wanted millions more for Puerto Rico than the $600 million in nutrition aid that Trump has begrudgingly accepted. Similarly, the GOP stopped a House-passed disaster aid bill. Meanwhile, Puerto Rico is running out of food assistance, the Southeast is reeling from hurricanes and the Midwest is struggling with floods. In addition to the immediate humanitarian impact, there are broader political and policy implications from the impasse, especially if the massive bill isn’t completed soon. In particular, Senate Democrats campaigning in Iowa for the presidency are almost certain to be pressed on why they haven’t delivered flood relief.”
–Burgess Everett, “Senators desperately try to sway Trump amid disaster aid debacle,” Politico, April 4, 2019 6:21 pm