Shutdown 2018: Government Shuts Down Over Border Wall

A partial federal shutdown was expected to drag into the December 25th holiday as President Donald Trump and congressional leaders remained stuck in a standoff over his border wall with Mexico with no breakthrough Saturday.

Vice President Mike Pence arrived on Capitol Hill with a counter-offer to Democrats after the two sides traded offers in recent days. At the White House, Trump heard mixed messages during a lunch with conservative lawmakers; some wanted him to fight for the wall, others preferred to get the government re-opened. The Senate, which had gaveled in with the House for a rare weekend session, adjourned until Monday, but won’t return for a full session until Dec. 27.

Even a temporary measure to keep government running for a few days while negotiations continued seemed out of reach.

“Listen, anything can happen,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell told reporters after he closed the session.

Trump hosted a lunch with conservative lawmakers, including House Freedom Caucus chiefs Mark Meadows of North Carolina and Jim Jordan of Ohio, and several senators, among them Lindsey Graham of South Carolina. Absent from the guest list were GOP leaders or any Democrats.

For the second day in a row, Pence shuttled over to the Capitol to work on a deal. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York met with Pence at the request of the White House, according to Schumer’s office.

Shelby said the two sides had exchanged counter-offers over the past days and that Pence was arriving with a new one from the White House. Pence left a short time later.

Schumer said the “Trump shutdown” could end immediately if Trump simply dropped his demand for money that was the centerpiece of his presidential campaign. Trump had pledged that Mexico would pay for the wall; Mexico has refused.

“If you want to open the government, you must abandon the wall,” Schumer said.

Read more at YWN

<blockquote class=”twitter-tweet” data-lang=”en”><p lang=”en” dir=”ltr”>OUR GREAT COUNTRY MUST HAVE BORDER SECURITY! <a href=”https://t.co/ZGcYygMf3a”>pic.twitter.com/ZGcYygMf3a</a></p>&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href=”https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1076308614372048897?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>December 22, 2018</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class=”twitter-tweet” data-lang=”en”><p lang=”en” dir=”ltr”>A design of our Steel Slat Barrier which is totally effective while at the same time beautiful! <a href=”https://t.co/sGltXh0cu9″>pic.twitter.com/sGltXh0cu9</a></p>&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href=”https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1076239448461987841?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>December 21, 2018</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class=”twitter-tweet” data-lang=”en”><p lang=”en” dir=”ltr”>Some of the many Bills that I am signing in the Oval Office right now. Cancelled my trip on Air Force One to Florida while we wait to see if the Democrats will help us to protect America’s Southern Border! <a href=”https://t.co/ws6LYhKcKl”>pic.twitter.com/ws6LYhKcKl</a></p>&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href=”https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1076256868190834689?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>December 21, 2018</a></blockquote>
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