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House Democrats postpone retreat because timing conflicts with Feb. 15 funding deadline

Democrats had scheduled the retreat to be Feb. 13-15 in Leesburg before three-week continuing resolution

House Democratic Caucus Chairman Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., is postponing the caucus’s annual retreat that had been scheduled for Feb. 13-15 because it bumps up against the new government funding deadline. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call file photo)
House Democratic Caucus Chairman Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., is postponing the caucus’s annual retreat that had been scheduled for Feb. 13-15 because it bumps up against the new government funding deadline. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call file photo)

House Democrats are postponing their annual retreat that was scheduled to take place Feb. 13-15 in Leesburg, Va., because the timing conflicts with the new government funding deadline. 

The Democratic Caucus will be announcing new dates for the retreat in the near future, Michael Hardaway, spokesman for Caucus Chairman Hakeem Jeffries said. 

The caucus had scheduled the retreat before Congress and President Donald Trump reached a deal Friday to end the 35-day partial government shutdown by passing a three-week continuing resolution to temporarily reopen the government. 

The CR expires Feb. 15, which is the same day Democrats were scheduled to be wrapping up their retreat.

Three weeks is a short time for lawmakers and the White House to reach a border security funding deal that has eluded them for months, so it’s likely lawmakers will need those final three days before the deadline to finalize and pass a deal or come up with an alternative, like another CR. 

House Republicans also had postponed their retreat, initially scheduled for Jan. 30 — Feb. 1 in White Sulphur Springs, W.Va., due to the shutdown. 

Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy announced that Republicans would postpone the retreat until the next quarter before the shutdown ended.

Once a temporary funding resolution was reached Friday, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said he planned to urge Republicans to go on their retreat this weeks, since that was the time allotted in the schedule for it. 

Republicans did not heed the advice and have not yet announced a new date for their retreat. 

House party caucus retreats are more accessible to the press than separate retreats Senate Republicans and Senate Democrats hold, which took place this week and last with little fanfare, or access. 

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