Wall of support
US lawmakers agree on a $1.4 billion pact for Trump’s Mexican border wall
WASHINGTON — US lawmakers reached agreement to prevent a government shutdown and finance construction of new barriers along the US-Mexico border, overcoming a late-stage hang-up over immigration enforcement issues that had threatened to scuttle the talks.
Republicans were desperate to avoid another bruising shutdown. They tentatively agreed on Monday night to far less money for US President Donald Trump’s border wall than the White House’s $5.7 billion wish list, settling for a figure of nearly $1.4 billion, according to congressional aides. The funding measure is through the fiscal year, which ends on Sept 30.
That amount is far less than Trump has demanded. But if accepted, the deal would avert another chaotic standoff in which Trump has threatened to cut budgets from swathes of government this Friday.
Senator Richard Shelby, a key Republican negotiator, told reporters an agreement in principle had been reached between Republican and Democratic lawmakers.
The agreed figure would fund approximately 55 miles (89 kilometers), all to be located in the Rio Grande Valley area of south Texas, senior congressional aides said.
The pact also includes increases for new technologies such as advanced screening at border entry points, humanitarian aid sought by Democrats, and additional customs officers.
This weekend, Shelby pulled the plug on the talks over Democratic demands to limit immigrant deten- tions by federal authorities, frustrating some of his fellow negotiators, but Democrats yielded ground on that issue in a fresh round of talks on Monday.
The deal still faces White House approval.
Asked if Trump would back the deal, Shelby said: “We believe from our dealings with them and the latitude they’ve given us, they will support it. We certainly hope so.”
Trump traveled to El Paso, Texas, for a campaign-style rally on Monday night focused on immigration and border issues. He has been adamant that Congress approve money for a wall along the Mexican border, though he no longer repeats his 2016 mantra that Mexico will pay for it, and he took to the stage as lawmakers back in Washington were announcing their breakthrough.
“They said that progress is being made with this committee,” Trump told his audience, referring to the congressional bargainers. “Just so you know, we’re building the wall anyway.”
Gaping rift
The wall debate has deepened the already gaping rift between left and right since Trump’s election.
There is even disagreement over the realities on the ground in El Paso.
Trump said fencing through the city had dramatically reduced crime by separating it from the troubled Mexican city of Ciudad Juarez, just across the border.
However, El Paso Mayor Dee Margo said this narrative was “not factually correct.”
“We were safe before and safe after,” he told AFP. “The fence has helped with some criminal activities but the primary reason we are as safe as we are is because of our police force and our public safety people.”
Trump has certainly failed to persuade Congress to fund his wall project, with Democrats accusing the president of using the whole issue to boost his political base, rather than fix the complex border situation.
Trump, fearing a humiliating defeat on his signature issue, has fought back fiercely.
In December, he pushed back at Congress by refusing to fund large sections of the government, leading to a five-week shutdown of some 800,000 federal jobs. Next, he gave Congress until Friday to come up with the wall money or face another shutdown.
Alternatively, Trump could declare a national emergency, giving himself power to take the money from the military, although this would likely provoke lawsuits and even more political recriminations.