Large portions of the government have been shut down for nearly two weeks after President Donald Trump and lawmakers on Capitol Hill failed to compromise on spending for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. | Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Government Shutdown Trump: Shutdown is Democrats' attempt to take the presidency

President Donald Trump again sought to wash his hands of responsibility for the partial government shutdown on Thursday, dismissing it as a ploy by Democrats to take the presidency in 2020.

"The Shutdown is only because of the 2020 Presidential Election. The Democrats know they can’t win based on all of the achievements of 'Trump,' so they are going all out on the desperately needed Wall and Border Security — and Presidential Harassment. For them, strictly politics!" Trump wrote on Twitter.


Trump's references to the approaching presidential election reflect the growing Democratic field to vie for the presidency in 2020. Trump launched his reelection campaign in January 2017 — extraordinarily early for an incumbent president — and broke convention by fundraising for himself during the 2018 midterms. Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts was the first major Democrat to announce the early stages of a presidential campaign, launching an exploratory committee on New Year's Eve.

Other Democrats who have announced campaigns or exploratory committees include Rep. John Delaney (D-Md.), former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Julián Castro and West Virginia state Sen. Richard Ojeda. The list of potential Democratic challengers runs the gamut from established party figures like former Secretary of State John Kerry and former Vice President Joe Biden, to progressives and fresh faces, including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and outgoing Rep. Beto O'Rourke (D-Texas).

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Large portions of the government have been shut down for nearly two weeks after Trump and lawmakers on Capitol Hill failed to compromise on spending for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. Trump said he would shutter the government if he didn't get $5 billion for a wall — his long-standing and largely unfulfilled campaign promise.

During a meeting on Dec. 11 with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, Trump asserted his desire for a wall above all else, declaring, “I am proud to shut down the government for border security." Schumer could be seen suppressing a smile as the president promised responsibility for any closure of the government.

But shortly after, Trump threw blame back across the aisle.

"The Democrats now own the shutdown!" Trump wrote on Twitter just a few days before Christmas.

Though several portions of the government had secured funding before the shutdown was announced, government functions continue to deteriorate under skeletal funding and oversight. Thousands of federal workers continue to work without pay while others have been furloughed.

Pelosi is expected to introduce measures to reopen the government when the House comes back in session on Thursday with a Democratic majority.