Top congressional Democrats boycotted a high-stakes budget meeting with White House officials Tuesday; refusing to attend a scheduled lunch between party leaders aimed at re-opening the federal government.
“The President has a proposal on the table that includes additional technology at ports of entry, allows minors from Central America to seek asylum in their home country, and physical barriers between ports of entry made of steel instead of concrete,” said White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders.
“Today, the President offered both Democrats and Republicans the chance to meet for lunch at the White House. Unfortunately, no Democrats will attend. The President looks forward to having a working lunch with House Republicans to solve the border crisis and reopen the government,” she added.
“It’s time for the Democrats to come to the table and make a deal,” said Sanders.
Read the full report at Fox News.
BAD VACATION: Trump Slams Top Democrats for ‘Celebrating Shutdown’ in Puerto Rico
President Trump didn’t mince words when commenting on the Democrats’ recent trip to Puerto Rico Monday; saying he was in the nation’s capital “all weekend” while liberal lawmakers were “celebrating” the shutdown on a tropical beach.
President Trump: "I've been here all weekend. A lot of the Democrats were in Puerto Rico celebrating something. I don't know. Maybe they're celebrating the #shutdown." pic.twitter.com/iZoixGG0Ro
— CSPAN (@cspan) January 14, 2019
“I’ve been here all weekend. A lot of the Democrats were in Puerto Rico celebrating something. I don’t know, maybe they’re celebrating the shutdown. We have a very big crisis on the border. Everybody knows it, they know it,” said the president.
“The Republicans are rock solid, we’ve got to take care of our border. Many of the people that aren’t being paid right now are in total agreement with us,” he added.
Watch the President’s comments above.
BUDGET SHOWDOWN: Trump Summons GOP Leaders to White House over Border Wall
President Trump summoned congressional Republicans to the White House Thursday afternoon; throwing a major “roadblock” in their efforts to pass a “stopgap” budget deal that doesn’t include funding for his border wall.
“A potential deal on Capitol Hill to avert a government shutdown with a short-term spending measure hit a roadblock Thursday as the White House said President Trump ‘does not want to go further’ with anything that does not include sought-after funding for border security,” writes Fox News.
“The president is having a meeting with Republican House members at noon today,” White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said in a statement. “At this moment, the president does not want to go further without border security, which includes steel slats or a wall. The president is continuing to weigh his options.”
Congress must pass a budget by Friday evening or the government will immediately “shutdown” until an agreement could be reached.
Read the full story at Fox News.