WASHINGTON (AP) Congressional negotiators reached agreement to prevent a government shutdown and finance construction of new barriers along the U.S.-Mexico border, overcoming a late-stage hang-up over immigration enforcement issues that had threatened to scuttle the talks.
Republicans were desperate to avoid another bruising shutdown. They tentatively agreed Monday night to far less money for President Donald Trumps border wall than the White Houses $5.7 billion wish list, settling for a figure of nearly $1.4 billion, according to congressional aides. The funding measure is through the fiscal year, which ends on Sept. 30.
Its not clear whether Trump will support the deal, although GOP negotiators said they were hopeful.
The agreement means 55 miles of new fencing constructed through existing designs such as metal slats instead of a concrete wall but far less than the 215 miles the White House demanded in December. The fencing would be built in the Rio Grande Valley in Texas. It actually closely mirrors Trumps original budget request from last winter, however.
The split-the-differences compromise contains plenty to anger lawmakers on the right and left too much border fencing than many Democrats would like and too little for conservative Republicans but its authors praised it as a genuine compromise that would keep the government open and allow everyone to move on.
With the government being shut down, the specter of another shutdown this close, what brought us back together I thought tonight was we didnt want that to happen again, said Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Richard Shelby, R-Ala.
Details wont be officially released until today, but the pact came in time to alleviate any threat of a second partial government shutdown this weekend. Negotiators said its pretty much the deal that Trump could have gotten in December. Aides revealed the details under condition of anonymity because the agreement is tentative.
Our staffs are just working out the details, said House Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Nita Lowey, D-N.Y. She said the huge measure which combines seven spending bills into one measure would be publicly released as early as this afternoon.
This weekend, Shelby pulled the plug on the talks over Democratic demands to limit immigrant detentions by federal authorities, frustrating some of his fellow negotiators, but Democrats yielded ground on that issue in a fresh round of talks on Monday.
Asked if Trump would back the deal, Shelby said: We believe from our dealings with them and the latitude theyve given us, they will support it. We certainly hope so.
But Fox News Channels Sean Hannity, a Trump ally, said the barrier money in the agreement was inadequate. He warned late Monday that any Republican that supports this garbage compromise, you will have to explain.
I would hope that Sean Hannity and all the other people you mentioned arent running this government. This was a bipartisan deal, Senate and House, Republican and Democrat, top negotiator Rep. Nita Lowey, D-N.Y., said on CNN. When we sat around the table and negotiated this deal, we didnt call Sean Hannity, we didnt call (Ann) Coulter. Coulter is a conservative commentator.
Trump traveled to El Paso, Texas, for a campaign-style rally Monday night focused on immigration and border issues. He has been adamant that Congress approve money for a wall along the Mexican border, though he no longer repeats his 2016 mantra that Mexico will pay for it, and he took to the stage as lawmakers back in Washington were announcing their breakthrough.
They said that progress is being made with this committee, Trump told his audience, referring to the congressional bargainers. Just so you know, were building the wall anyway.
Democrats carried more leverage into the talks after besting Trump on the 35-day shutdown but showed flexibility in hopes on winning Trumps signature. After yielding on border barriers, Democrats focused on reducing funding for detention beds to curb what they see as unnecessarily harsh enforcement by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE.
