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Guess what seems to be back in the mix as Congress and the White House try go figure out a budget deal to avert a holiday government shutdown? Yep, border wall funding. There were reports Wednesday that Donald Trump was not going to insist on that funding being included, reports he must have seen.
In a meeting Thursday morning between Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Appropriations chair Sen. Richard Shelby, and Eric Ueland, who is Trump's top liaison to Congress, Shelby was asked if border wall funding came up."Oh, that's everywhere," he answered. Because of course it is, because it's Trump.
Leaders of committees in the House and Senate are scheduled to meet next Tuesday evening to try to move forward on the agreement that will fund government after Nov. 21, when the current stop-gap bill its running on expires. "The group will discuss funding for President Donald Trump's border wall and allocations for the 12 spending bills that fund the day-to-day operations of the federal government, Shelby said." Because of course it will. Asked about whether there was any progress on the border wall issue, Shelby said "Well, sometimes we think we are and then we go back a couple of steps. So not today, not yet."
No one knows what Trump's going to demand next, just like no one knows for sure that he's not going to fly into an impeachment-fueled rage and burn the whole country down—with Mitch McConnell and team handing him the matches.