WASHINGTON (AP) President Donald Trump will argue to the nation tonight that a crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border requires the long and invulnerable wall hes demanding before ending a partial government shutdown that has hundreds of thousands of federal workers fearing missed paychecks on Friday.
Trumps first Oval Office speech will be followed by a Thursday visit to the southern border to highlight his demand for a barrier. White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders tweeted that he will meet with those on the front lines of the national security and humanitarian crisis.
The administration is also at least talking about the idea of declaring a national emergency to allow Trump to move forward on the wall without Congress approving the $5.6 billion he wants. Vice President Mike Pence said again Tuesday that the idea of making such a declaration remains on the table.
Such a move would certainly draw legal challenges, and Trump who told lawmakers he would be willing to keep the government closed for months or even years has said he would like to continue negotiations for now.
The passion you hear from President Trump, his determination to take this case to the American people, as he will tonight in his national broadcast from the Oval Office, comes from this presidents deep desire to do his job to protect the American people, Pence said Tuesday on ABCs Good Morning America.
Were going to continue to carry that case forward until the Democrats in Congress come to the table and start negotiating, not just to end the government shutdown but to address what is an undeniable crisis at our southern border, added Pence who also lobbied for Trump during appearances on CBS and NBC.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer have come to the White House for several negotiating rounds with Trump. Democratic congressional staffers also participated in weekend talks led by Pence at the White House.
Pelosi and Schumer called for equal time to respond to Trump.
Now that the television networks have decided to air the Presidents address, which if his past statements are any indication will be full of malice and misinformation, Democrats must immediately be given equal airtime, they said in a joint statement Monday night.
As Trumps speech and border visit were announced, newly empowered House Democrats and at least a few Republican senators stepped up pressure on GOP lawmakers to reopen the government without giving in to the presidents demands The closure, now in its 18th day, is the second-longest in history and would become the longest this weekend.
Leaning on Senate Republicans, some of whom are growing anxious about the impact of the shutdown, Pelosi said the House would begin passing individual bills this week to reopen federal agencies, starting with the Treasury Department to ensure Americans receive their tax refunds.
In a pre-emptive move, the White House said Monday that tax refunds would be paid despite the shutdown. That shutdown exemption would break from past practice and could be challenged.
There is an indefinite appropriation to pay tax refunds. As a result … the refunds will go out as normal, said Russell Vought, acting director of the White House budget office.
There were other signs the administration is working to contain the fallout from the shutdown, which has furloughed 380,000 federal workers and forced another 420,000 to work without pay. The National Park Service said it was dipping into entrance fees to pay for staffing at some highly visited parks to maintain restrooms, remove up trash and patrol the grounds, after reports of human waste and garbage overflowing in some spots.
Over the weekend, the federal agency tasked with guaranteeing U.S. airport security acknowledged an increase in the number of employees missing work or calling in sick.
