White House closer to partial shutdown with wall demand

TIL Desk/World/Washington/Pushing the government to the brink of a partial shutdown, the White House is insisting that Congress provide USD 5 billion to build a wall along the US-Mexico border despite lawmaker resistance from both parties. Without a resolution, parts of the federal government will shut down at midnight Friday.

“We’re going to do whatever is necessary to build the border wall to stop this ongoing crisis of illegal immigration,” White House senior adviser Stephen Miller said Sunday. Asked if that meant having a government shutdown, he said:”If it comes to it, absolutely.”  Trump said last week he would be”proud” to have a shutdown to get Congress to approve a USD 5 billion down payment to fulfill his campaign promise to build a border wall.

But the president doesn’t have the votes from the Republican-controlled Congress to support funding for the wall at that level. Both parties in Congress have suggested that Trump would likely need to make the next move to resolve the impasse.  The House is taking an extended weekend break, returning Wednesday night. The Senate returns Monday after a three-day absence.