WALL SPAT THREATENS DEAL TO STOP SHUTDOWN
Trump’s insistence on border security funding puts wrinkle in talks
Congressional WASHINGTON Democrats urged President Trump on Monday to back off his demand to begin funding a Southwest border wall or risk shutting down the government at the end of the week.
“Instead of risking government shutdown by shoving this wall down Congress’ and the American peoples’ throats, the president ought to just let us come to an agreement,” Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., said in a conference call with reporters Monday.
Schumer and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said Democrats and Republicans have been negotiating well together on a bill to fund the gov- ernment beyond midnight Friday, when a stop-gap funding measure is set to expire. Lawmakers are trying to come up with a bill to fund federal agencies through the end of fiscal 2017, which ends on Sept. 30.
“Our appropriators were well on a path to resolving their differences and finding their common ground, respecting each other’s priorities until the White House intervened,” Pelosi said.
Trump has asked Congress to add an emergency funding request for $33 billion to the bill. The president wants $30 billion in extra defense and combat spending and $3 billion more for border security, including about $1.4 billion to begin building a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. He also called for $18 billion in cuts to domestic programs to help pay for his priorities.
Congress appeared to be on a path to agree on a bill giving Trump about $15 billion of the additional money he wanted for defense while largely ignoring his controversial requests for border wall funding and budget cuts. The Republican-led Congress needs support from Democrats to pass the legislation, and Democrats are fiercely opposed to the wall, which they have labeled immoral and unnecessary. Some Republicans, including Rep. Will Hurd, RTexas, also have said that the wall would be too expensive and ultimately ineffective.
However, the White House last week stepped up its demands for the border wall funding, suggesting that the president might not sign the bill if the money for the barrier is not included.
Building a border wall to reduce illegal immigration was one of Trump’s major campaign promises.
White House spokesman Sean Spicer told reporters Monday that the border wall, border security and defense spending remain Trump’s top priorities. But he stopped short of saying the president would veto the bill if the wall was not funded.
“The president’s priorities have been very clear from the beginning,” Spicer said. He added, “We feel very confident the government’s not going to shut down.”
It still wasn’t clear Monday exactly what the funding bill will contain.
The legislation was expected to be unveiled Tuesday when the House returns from a two-week recess. The Senate came back Monday.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said bipartisan talks were continuing Monday “so we can complete our work on that issue very soon.”
“Our appropriators were well on a path to resolving their differences until the White House intervened.” House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi “The president’s priorities have been very clear from the beginning.” White House spokesman Sean Spicer