The White House continues to send mixed signals over whether it will draw a hard line on requiring that funding for a border wall be included in any spending bill that hits the president’s desk.
President Trump signaled to a gathering of conservative media on Monday that he may be open to a delay in funding for his proposed border wall.
The president said, according to tweets from conservative media at the gathering this evening, that his administration could get the funding for the wall this week or could come back to it in September.
Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) quickly seized on the remarks in an off-camera response Monday evening, saying it’s good for the country that the president is taking the wall off the table in negotiations with Congress over government funding.
“It’s good for the country that President Trump is taking the wall off the table in these negotiations. Now the bipartisan and bicameral negotiators can continue working on the outstanding issues,” Schumer said in a statement.
But when asked by ABC News on Tuesday morning, White House press secretary Sean Spicer said the president has not given up on getting funding for the wall now. He said funding for the border wall remains a White House priority for both the fiscal year 2017 and 2018 spending bills.
Democrats in Congress have vowed to block the passage of a last-minute appropriations bill if it includes funding for the wall.
This is a developing news story. Please check back for updates.