Monday, April 24, 2017

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on President Donald Trump (all times local):

1:07 p.m.

There was a bit of awkwardness at President Donald Trump's lunch with U.N. diplomats when he made an undiplomatic comment about Nikki Haley, his ambassador to the U.N.

Trump was kicking off Monday's lunch with ambassadors of countries on the U.N. Security Council when he asked the room if they liked Haley, the U.S. ambassador to the U.N.

Trump said that if they didn't, "she could easily be replaced."

The comment sparked some awkwardness, but seemed to be taken in jest. Haley and others gathered around the lengthy table laughed.

Trump quickly assured Haley her job was safe. "I promise, we don't do that," Trump said, and praised Haley for doing a "fantastic job."

Haley has been one of the Trump administration's most vocal members, taking a tough line on Russia and Syria and telling North Korea not to give the U.S. "a reason" to fight.

12:40 p.m.

President Donald Trump is calling for "big reforms" to the United Nations and criticizing its handling of recent events in Syria and North Korea.

Trump is meeting with ambassadors of countries on the U.N. Security Council at the White House.

He says he's long considered the organization an "underperformer." But he says he also thinks it has "tremendous potential."

He says, "You just don't see the United Nations, like, solving conflicts. I think that's going to start happening now."

Trump is calling the organization's response to the chemical weapons attack in Syria a "great disappointment." And he says the council should be prepared to impose additional sanctions on North Korea.

He adds that the country is "a real threat to the world, whether we want to talk about it or not."

10:25 a.m.

Congress' two top Democrats say negotiators could finish a budget bill by Friday averting a government shutdown if President Donald Trump stepped back from his demands for money to build a border wall with Mexico.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a Monday conference call with reporters that Trump is risking a federal shutdown "by shoving this wall down Congress' and the American people's throats."

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said Trump's campaign promise to build the wall didn't include paying for it by taking "food out of the mouths of babies" and cutting other programs.

The two leaders' call came during the week leading up to next weekend's 100th day of Trump's presidency. They say the period has been marked by Trump's broken promises to help working-class Americans.

9 a.m.

President Donald Trump says that a border wall with Mexico would be an "important tool" for stopping the flow of drugs into the United States.

Trump tweeted Monday that, "the Wall is a very important tool in stopping drugs from pouring into our country and poisoning our youth (and many others)!"

Trump approaches the symbolic 100-day mark for his administration this week, renewing his demands that a must-pass government funding bill should include money for the wall.

In a tweet Sunday, Trump jabbed at Democrats, who vigorously oppose wall funding.

He said, "the Democrats don't want money from budget going to border wall despite the fact that it will stop drugs and very bad MS 13 gang members."

7:45 a.m.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer says President Donald Trump has thrown "a monkey wrench" into congressional talks on a catch-all spending bill with his insistence that the measure includes start-up money for a wall along the U.S. border with Mexico.

Schumer tells MSNBC "this wall is un-thought-out and doesn't work." He says Trump's attitude toward bargaining over a short-term funding bill to avert a government shutdown later this week "can't be my way or the highway."

The New York Democrat says he speaks with Trump occasionally and said that "my advice to the president is to start keeping some of your promises."

Schumer asserted that Trump "seems to be in a little bubble with some very, very rich people."

Speaking of the president's promise of a major tax overhaul effort, Schumer says, "If the vast majority of his tax cuts are going to go to the wealthy, he won't be able to work with us."

3:15 a.m.

With a budget deadline looming, President Donald Trump plans a whirlwind of activities seeking to highlight accomplishments while putting fresh pressure on congressional Democrats to pay for a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border, even if that pressure risks a possible government shutdown.

Trump approaches the symbolic 100-day mark for his administration this coming week juggling a renewed health care push and his demands that a must-pass government funding bill should include money for the wall.

In a tweet Sunday, Trump jabbed at Democrats, who vigorously oppose wall funding. "The Democrats don't want money from budget going to border wall despite the fact that it will stop drugs and very bad MS 13 gang members."

He added: "Eventually, but at a later date so we can get started early, Mexico will be paying, in some form, for the badly needed border wall."

The 100-day mark falls on Saturday, the same day government could shut down without a budget deal. Trump has announced a rally in Pennsylvania that day.

(Copyright 2017. Associated Press.)