Trump concession to Democrats rejected as shutdown continues

DONALD Trump’s political rivals last night rejected his latest offer to end the crippling government shutdown before he had even delivered his speech.

In a tit-for-tat war of words, the President was accused of ‘more hostage taking’ as he offered temporary protection for 700,000 young undocumented immigrants, known as ‘Dreamers’, in exchange for the money for his controversial Mexico border wall.

In response, after his ploy was outright rejected, he delivered a thinly veiled warning that he could turn his wrath towards illegal immigrants unless he gets his own way.

As the shutdown reached day 30 yesterday with no end in sight, Mr Trump offered an olive branch – an extension to the Dreamers programme he has tried to shut down since taking office. The scheme allows undocu- mented migrants who were brought to the US before they turned 18 – many by their parents in the hope of a better life – to work but not to gain citizenship.

Mr Trump said he would extend the programme by another three years, instead of trying to scrap it, if the Democrats agreed to fund his £4.5 billion wall, the argument that has lead to the shutdown.

But the Democrats immediately rejected the offer, meaning a quarter of the US government remains closed for a fifth week.

Some 800,000 federal employees are either sitting at home, being forced to work without pay, or taking up other jobs. Many have been forced into financial difficulty.

Yesterday Mr Trump took to Twitter to try to force the hand of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer, the two most senior Democrats.

He wrote: ‘Nancy Pelosi and some of the Democrats turned down my offer yesterday before I even got up to speak. They don’t see crime and drugs, they only see [the election of] 2020 – which they are not going to win.

‘There will be no big push to remove the 11,000,000-plus people who are here illegally – but be careful, Nancy!’

Plans are in place for a full state visit to the UK by Mr Trump in June, it was reported yesterday. Downing Street and the White House are said to be discussing timing the visit to coincide with the 75th anniversary of D-Day.

Mr Trump is already set to be in France for the commemorations and sources told The Sunday Times it would ‘make sense’ for the President to visit Britain afterwards.