Congressional leaders sounded confident on Tuesday that they would be able to row back from the brink of a government shutdown after Donald Trump signaled a softening on his demand for immediate funding of the wall along the US-Mexico border.



Though Trump insisted that his controversial plan to build a barrier along the southern border would begin “soon”, Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill were reportedly pressing ahead with a spending plan that included no such funding. Congress has until Friday to approve a spending package to avoid a shutdown of the federal government.

“The president’s 11th-hour demand threatened to upend the progress. We’re pleased he’s backing off,” the Senate minority leader, Chuck Schumer, said during a press conference on Tuesday.

Though he would not offer details, Schumer said the bipartisan group of negotiators involved in crafting the spending package were taking the signals from Trump and his team “at face value” and proceeding on the basis that funding for the wall would not be a part of the package.

“The fact that the wall is now off the table – Americans should breathe a huge sigh of relief, the negotiations can resume and move forward,” he said.

Trump and his team had previously been resolute in their demand for funding in the omnibus plan. Trump’s budget director, Mick Mulvaney, has said the White House proposed a dollar-for-dollar funding deal between the wall and healthcare subsides for low-income Americans.

Democrats have remained opposed to allocating funds for a wall and Republicans need their support to pass the spending bill.

On Tuesday, Republicans moved to avert an impasse – and threat of a shutdown – and proposed a spending bill that included no funding for the wall, according to the Washington Post. As a trade-off, the plan includes increased money for border security and defense spending.

There are still several sticking points in the negotiations. Democrats are wary of “poison pill riders” and want to see the spending bill extend health provisions for coalminers, provide relief for Puerto Rico, and fund Obamacare subsidies, Schumer said.

The Senate majority leader, Mitch McConnell, said he was hopeful lawmakers would reach a bipartisan agreement within the next few days. Asked if Congress would opt instead to pass a stopgap measure to buy more time to negotiate, McConnell said he was optimistic that lawmakers would reach an agreement on legislation that would fund the government through the end of the fiscal year, on 30 September.

Trump indicated that he was backing away from his border wall demand during a meeting with representatives of conservative media outlets on Monday night. Trump told reporters that he is open to waiting until negotiations for next year’s budget to push for the allocation of funds along the US-Mexico border, according to the accounts of several attendees.



Yet the president was adamant that his concession on the spending bill did not signal that he was any less committed to building the wall, a signature campaign promise.

“Don’t let the fake media tell you that I have changed my position on the WALL,” Trump tweeted on Tuesday. “It will get built and help stop drugs, human trafficking etc.”

Kellyanne Conway, the president’s counselor, said that Trump remains committed to constructing the wall but suggested that the president was willing to wait for funding in the interest of avoiding a shutdown.

“Building that wall and having it funded remains an important priority to him,” Conway said in an appearance on Fox & Friends on Tuesday morning. “But we also know that that can happen later this year and into next year. And in the interim, you see other smart technology and other resources and tools being used toward border security.”

A shutdown would be disastrous for Republicans, who control both chambers of Congress and the White House. It would also come on the president’s 100th day in office, a significant milestone that threatens to be overshadowed if Congress and the White House fail to keep the government open.



Despite reservations from liberals and conservatives about the cost and complications of building a barrier on the southern border, Trump on Tuesday doubled down on his commitment to it.

“We’re already preparing,” Trump said. “We’re doing plans, we’re doing specifications, we’re doing a lot of work on the wall, and the wall is going to get built.”

Asked at the agricultural event when he expected construction to begin, Trump replied “soon” and specified that it would be completed during his first term as president.

“We have plenty of time,” Trump said. “We’ve got a lot of time.”