When the 116th Congress begins in just over a month, President Donald Trump’s dream of a wall on the U.S.-Mexican border will be all but dead. Massive gains in the midterm elections will give Democrats a sizable majority in the House of Representatives and the ability to stymie funding for an expensive, impractical, and offensive symbol of xenophobia and nativism.



But first, we have to get through yet another government funding fight. Congress has nine days to pass seven bills to fund a number of government agencies, including the Departments of Homeland Security and Defense. But while both Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Speaker Paul Ryan have been loathe to rattle sabers, Trump is making their lives difficult, threatening to veto any spending bill that doesn’t contain funding for a border wall.



There is some urgency, to be sure. Trump has failed to deliver on many of his campaign promises, despite presiding over a unified government. With time running out—and with no campaign promise more important than the border wall—the president is itching for a fight.



This puts Senate Democrats, led by Chuck Schumer of New York, in an interesting position, given that some Democratic votes are required to pass a funding bill in the Senate. And Schumer, to the ire of many progressives, has shown a willingness to make a deal, presumably in exchange for legal protections for Dreamers, the group of undocumented immigrants who came to America as children and are protected under the DREAM Act, which Trump rescinded last fall. But attempting to negotiate with Trump is a profoundly risky strategy, especially given Trump’s history of hostage-taking and bad-faith dealing. It’s also one that should raise concerns about Schumer’s leadership as we head into the second half of Trump’s first term.



Asked on Tuesday about the funding for a wall, Schumer was adamant that the $1.6 billion that had already been allocated for fencing and other security measures was sufficient. Still, he said he was open to negotiating that number, just not in public.