Trump warns of government ‘shut down’ if Congress fails to clear Mexican border wall plan
31 Jul 2018
With eyes firmly on the mid-term polls, President Donald Trump has warned of a government ‘shut down’ if the Democrats refuse his demand for a $25-billion fund for a border wall with Mexico.
“I would be willing to 'shut down' government if the Democrats do not give us the votes for Border Security, which includes the Wall!" he tweeted. "Must get rid of Lottery, Catch & Release etc and finally go to system of Immigration based on MERIT! We need great people coming into our Country!”
Trump wants an end to the visa lottery program, which sees 50,000 green cards being allocated at random. He also wants to do away with the system that grants visas to people with relatives in the US.
In his tweet, Trump warned that the government would shut down by 30 September if laws relating to the border wall and changes to the immigration policy were not cleared.
And in a press conference that he addressed along with visiting Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, Trump said he was ready for talks with the Congress on these issues.
“I always leave room for negotiation,” said the President. “But if we don’t get border security, after many, many years of talk within the United States, I would have no problem doing a shutdown.”