The Heat: US border wall showdown and Trump challenges

The Heat

US Trump Administration

The White House appeared to blink Tuesday in its standoff with Congress over a budget deal that would provide the $5 billion President Trump wants to fund a southern border wall.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said the President doesn’t want to shut down the government and had other ways to find the funding for the wall.

It was a very different tone than we heard last week. During a contentious meeting in the Oval Office with Democratic leaders, President Trump had said he was ready to leave the government without funds to operate if he couldn’t get money for his long-promised wall.  The relationship between the President and Congress might become even more difficult come January when Democrats assume the majority in the House of Representatives.

To discuss what this could mean for U.S. policies:

  • Lester Munson is a principal in the International at BGR Group, a leading government relations firm.
  • Ahmed Younis is an International Security Program Fellow at New America and a former senior official at the U.S. State Department.
  • Song Zhang is the Washington Bureau Chief for the Shanghai Wen Hui Daily.

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