Trump walks out of urgent shutdown meeting

A WHITE House meeting between US President Donald Trump and congressional Democrats on Wednesday ended in acrimony after Trump walked out when he failed to receive assurances he would get funding for a border wall.

Trump tweeted afterwards that he abruptly ended the meeting, which was meant to make progress on ending a partial government shutdown, when House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told him she would not agree to funding for a wall even if he agreed to the Democrats’ plan to end the stalemate.

“I asked what is going to happen in 30 days if I quickly open things up, are you going to approve Border Security that includes a Wall or Steel Barrier? Nancy said, No. I said byebye, nothing else works!” he wrote on Twitter, calling the meeting “a total waste of time”.

Pelosi said the latest developments were “so sad” as they took place just a few days before hundreds of thousands of federal workers affected by the shutdown were due to be denied pay for the first time.

“The president seems to be insensitive to that,” Pelosi said, before taking a swipe at Trump’s family wealth. “He seems to think they can ask their father for more money, but they can’t.”

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Trump slammed the table in a “temper tantrum”, calling the behaviour “somewhat unbecoming of a president”.

Vice-president Mike Pence said he didn’t recall the president raising his voice or slamming his hand down.

With no deal in sight and the two sides firmly dug in, about a quarter of the government remains shut.

National parks remain partially closed along with museums in Washington and some agencies that directly serve the public.