Scoop: Trump enlists business to push Dems on shutdown

• White House officials tell Axios they've had about 400 calls with a range of interest groups in recent weeks to press them on the shutdown — even as Trump was publicly musing that it would give his team an opportunity to slash Democratic priorities.

Zoom out: Dozens of industry groups across the ideological spectrum have already called on Congress to end the shutdown.

• They include outfits that haven't always supported parts of Trump's agenda, such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters and the Business Roundtable, which represents CEOs.
• They also represent constituencies whose support will be coveted by both parties heading into the midterm elections next year.
• Senate Democrats — who are trying to avoid cuts in public health insurance programs — have so far stood firm.

Zoom in: Trump and top administration officials have spent months in talks with trade groups, and have invited many of them into the White House for in-person meetings, sources familiar with the meetings told Axios.

• Trump has made a point of meeting with trade groups, and has met with leaders of the American Petroleum Institute and the Fraternal Order of Police. He also spoke at the Business Roundtable's quarterly meeting in March.
• The president has developed a relationship with Teamsters president Sean O'Brien, who spoke at last year's GOP convention. Trump aides have eaten meals with Teamsters officials in the White House Mess.
• The White House has hosted events that prominently featured pilots and flight attendants, whose trade group has come out forcefully in opposition to the shutdown.
• Trump's team has also been in touch with local and state chapters of the Chamber of Commerce.

Aides say Trump keeps a close eye on which organizations are with him — and which aren't.

• The White House has created a scorecard that rates 553 companies and trade groups on how aligned they are with Trump's agenda. The administration refers to the scorecard when determining how much access to the president an outfit should get.
• Trump has been getting briefed on which lobbying groups have called for an end to the shutdown.

White House officials insist they haven't been explicitly pressuring groups to oppose the shutdown, but have strongly nudged them toward Trump's corner.

• They have, for example, conveyed to the Chamber of Commerce and the Business Roundtable that if they want to continue to engage with the administration, they have to show they can "play ball," one Trump aide said.
• Trump's team also has "made it clear what the shutdown will mean" to the constituencies of major groups, the aide said.

Administration officials also have been in touch with the powerful National Association of Manufacturers, whose president, Jay Timmons, released a statement Tuesday night calling for an end to the shutdown.

• "We ... told them this is the right thing to do for manufacturers," a White House aide told Axios. "They understand that it's an easy way to signal to the White House that they are being constructive partners."
• A NAM spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment.

Reality check: Many prominent trade groups have long opposed government shutdowns, regardless of which party is in power.

• That includes the Chamber, which said in 2023 that a shutdown that ultimately was averted then would have been "devastating" for the economy.
• "Business Roundtable has consistently opposed government shutdowns, and for over 50 years we have worked constructively with every administration and congressional leadership," said Michael Steel, a Roundtable spokesperson.

What they're saying: "The sheer amount of groups urging the Democrats to reopen the government only further highlights how unpopular the left's policies are with people across the political spectrum," White House deputy press secretary Abigail Jackson said.