Trump signals delay in funding for wall

Donald Trump has indicated he is willing to delay his demand for funding of his Mexican border wall to avoid a shutdown of the federal government .

Trump, in a private meeting with conservative media outlets, said he might wait until Republicans begin drafting the budget blueprint for the fiscal year that starts on 1 October to seek government funds for building a wall along the US-Mexico border, the White House confirmed.

The border wall spending is fiercely opposed by Democrats and also unpopular with many Republicans. Trump, whose approval ratings have steadily declined since he took office, is facing a deadline on Friday for Congress to pass the spending bill funding the government through to September or risk marking his 100th day in office on Saturday with a government shutdown.

The Senate minority leader, Chuck Schumer, who has a key role providing Democratic votes to pass the legislation, welcomed Trump’s reported shift on the wall. “It’s good for the country that President Trump is taking the wall off the table in these negotiations,” Schumer said late on Monday. “Now the bipartisan and bicameral negotiators can continue working on the outstanding issues.”

Although Republicans control both chambers of Congress, a funding bill will need 60 votes to clear the 100-member Senate, where Republicans hold 52 seats, meaning at least some Democrats will have to get behind it.

If no spending measure covering 29 April to 30 September is in place by midnight on Saturday, government funds will halt and hundreds of thousands of the country’s several million federal employees will be temporarily laid off. Those in jobs deemed essential such as law enforcement are expected to keep working, hoping to get back pay.