Trump walks out of talks, may declare emergency Kamala likely to announce her White House run later this month
AFTER ‘BYE-BYE’ REMARK US prez to visit Texas border
WASHINGTON: The day after abruptly ending talks with Democrats, US President Donald Trump said he will “probably… may be definitely” declare a national emergency to fund his Us-mexico border wall if the impasse continued, with the ongoing government shutdown likely to become the longest in US history.
“Have the option” to do that, Trump told reporters before leaving for a border visit to Mcallen, Texas on Thursday. “If this doesn’t work out,” he said, referring to negotiations with the Democrats, “I’ll probably will do it, maybe definitely.”
He could announce it during the visit, according to some reports.
Though his aides and some Republican lawmakers have cautioned against it, saying it will be challenged in courts, the US president might still do it to demonstrate to his followers that he did everything he could.
Trump has the authority to declare a national emergency and dip in the US military’s budge for constructions - $13 billion at present - for the wall. Though he said he prefers the negotiations route, he might consider this option, if talks go nowhere.
Wednesday’s meeting at the White House broke up abruptly after 20 minutes. “The president just got up and walked out,” Chuck Schumer, the top Senate Democrat, told reporters in the driveway of the White House after the meeting.
“He asked Speaker (Nancy) Pelosi, ‘Will you agree to my wall?’ She said, ‘No.’ And he just got up and said, ‘Then we have nothing to discuss.’ And he just walked out. Again, we saw a temper tantrum.”
Later on, Trump confirmed most of it in a tweet. “Just left a meeting with Chuck and Nancy, a total waste of time. I asked what is going to happen in 30 days if I quickly open things up, are you going to approve Border Security which includes a Wall or Steel Barrier? Nancy said, NO. I said bye-bye, nothing else works!”
Trump is seeking $5.7 billion for the wall, which he now says can be a “steel barrier”.
Meanwhile, US Customs and Border Control announced on Wednesday that more than 60,000 illegal immigrants were apprehended along the southwest border in December. WASHINGTON: US Senator Kamala Harris is expected to announce her candidacy for the 2020 White House race on or after January 21, which is observed as Martin Luther King Day.
Kamala, who is of mixed African-american and Indian-american origin, had indicated earlier she would decide about the run during the holidays. Though she hasn’t yet decided, she is widely expected to do so and her ongoing tour to promote her new book, The Truths We Hold: An American Journey, is adding to the speculation. She has been reportedly putting together the logistics of the campaign such as selecting a site for her announcement, the headquarters and the personnel.
The San Francisco Chronicle reported on Wednesday, citing sources, that the California senator could announce her run on MLK Day or after, but, it added, the exact date is still being worked out.
According to earlier reports, she is considering basing her campaign headquarter in Baltimore or Atlanta, both black-majority cities.
Kamala stands to make history when she announces her run - as the first African-american woman and the first Indianamerican woman to run for the White House.