U.S. President Donald Trump is accompanied by Vice President Mike Pence, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, Rep Steve Scalise (R-LA) and House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) as he speaks with reporters following a meeting with congressional leadership on the ongoing partial government shutdown in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, U.S., January 4, 2019. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump said a Friday meeting with senior U.S. lawmakers on the federal government shutdown was productive and that officials would meet during the weekend to address his longstanding promise to beef up security on the southern U.S. border.

“We had a very, very productive meeting and ... we’ve come a long way,” Trump said in the White House Rose Garden after the meeting, which included Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat who had described the meeting as sometimes contentious.

Trump said Vice President Mike Pence would lead meetings over the weekend on border security.

“We’re going to be meeting, I’ve designated a group, and we’re going to be meeting over the weekend, that group, to determine what we’re going to do about the border,” Trump said.