President Donald Trump repeatedly brushed off questions about federal workers who could miss paychecks, instead reiterating his belief that the country needs stronger border security. | Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo Government Shutdown Trump: Shutdown has 'higher purpose than next week's pay'

Thousands of federal employees are on furlough during the partial government shutdown, but President Donald Trump said Friday that it’s for a good cause.

“This really does have a higher purpose than next week’s pay,” Trump said during a news conference.


Speaking to reporters shortly after meeting with congressional leaders to discuss negotiating an end to the nearly two-week shutdown, Trump repeatedly brushed off questions about federal workers who could miss paychecks, hammering instead his talking point that the country needs stronger border security measures. The shutdown stems from Trump’s insistence that funding legislation to reopen the government include billions of dollars for physical barriers at the border with Mexico, which Democrats who control the House have refused to approve.

When asked whether there would be any safety net for federal employees who don’t get paid because of the shutdown, Trump said: “Well, the safety net is going to be having a strong border because we’re going to be safe.”

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Of landlords expecting rent from federal employees, he said he’d “encourage them to be nice and easy” on their tenants.

The remarks also came as The Washington Post reported that at the same time thousands of federal workers were going without pay, hundreds of senior Trump political appointees were set to get raises of about $10,000 a year. The raises are the result of Congress failing to renew a cap on those appointees’ pay, allowing their salaries to go up, the Post reported.

When asked whether he would tell his appointees not to accept the raise, Trump said he would consider it.

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said after the news conference that the administration is “exploring options to prevent this from being implemented while some federal workers are furloughed. Congress can easily take care of this by funding the government and securing our borders.”

Trump said his administration would continue meeting through the weekend to determine how to secure funding for the wall, one of his central campaign promises. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has repeatedly said Democrats would not give in to demands for more funding, and she said her meeting with Trump on Friday was “contentious.”

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Trump told Democrats on Friday that he was willing to extend the shutdown for “months or even years” to get the funding he wanted, an account Trump confirmed during the news conference.

The president said a resolution could come soon, though, and he added that he believes federal employees are fine with the shutdown continuing.

“I think if you ever really looked at those people,” Trump said, “I think they would say, ‘Mr. President, keep going.’”