Trump defends shutdown offer after attacks from conservatives
White House hopes to build support with individual Democrats for deal on wall funding
Donald Trump hit back at critics from the conservative wing of his own party on Sunday, after his latest attempt to end the longest government shutdown in US history was met with hostility from both Republicans and Democrats.
With the president’s poll rating slipping and the US economy showing signs of strain, Mr Trump made an unexpected offer on Saturday to extend protections offered to some undocumented immigrants in return for $5.7bn in funding for a wall along the border with Mexico. But before the offer was even formally made, it was rejected outright by Democratic leaders.
Within hours Mr Trump faced attacks from his own supporters on the right. Ann Coulter, a conservative pundit, who has pushed Mr Trump to take a hard line on immigration, on Saturday compared the president to Jeb Bush, one of the centrist candidates he defeated in the Republican primary race two years ago. Ms Coulter tweeted on Saturday night: “Trump proposes amnesty. We voted for Trump and got Jeb!”
Mr Trump defended his offer on Sunday. Referring to the protections given to those who entered the US as children without documentation, he tweeted: “No, Amnesty is not a part of my offer. It is a 3-year extension of DACA [Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals]. Amnesty will be used only on a much bigger deal, whether on immigration or something else.”
With Mr Trump’s room for manoeuvre also penned in by his critics on the right, the administration is hoping they can appeal instead to individual Democrats to break with their leadership.
Mike Pence, the vice-president, on Sunday told Fox News: “The president has been sitting down and talking to rank and file Democrats. We’ve been in contact with Senate Democrats and the president has told us to listen.”
He told CBS News that he would be willing to amend Mr Trump’s proposals on the floor of the Senate if Democrats came forward with their own suggestions
The president’s televised offer was the first sign that he is willing to compromise in the four-week long stand-off that has brought large parts of the government to a standstill and left some 800,000 workers without pay.
As the shutdown enters its fifth week, the economy has started to suffer, with businesses in areas of high government employment reporting reduced revenues and demand at food banks increasing. Meanwhile polls suggest most voters blame Mr Trump for the failure to reopen government.
The president proposed reopening the government if the Democrats agreed to spend $5.7bn on a border wall in return for a three-year extension for the protections offered to both those who qualify for Daca and those with temporary protected status.
Senators will on Tuesday vote on those proposals, although they are unlikely to pass.
Chuck Schumer, the leader of the Democrats in the Senate, said on Saturday: “It was the president who single-handedly took away DACA and TPS [temporary protected status] protections in the first place — offering some protections back in exchange for the wall is not a compromise but more hostage taking.”
The Democrats have insisted that Mr Trump reopen the government before discussing border security and have also said they will not contemplate funding for a border wall.