On shutdown Day 20, Trump heads to border

WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump visits the southern U.S. border in Texas on Thursday to continue pushing for funding for a border wall. It is the 20th day of the partial government shutdown after another round of talks with lawmakers ended unproductively Wednesday. Trump, Vice President Mike Pence, and other White House officials went to the U.S. Capitol to meet with Republican lawmakers and urge them to stand in solidarity with the administration. Later that day, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., met with the president at the White House. When the Democratic leaders wouldn’t budge on their commitment to block wall funding from the federal budget, Trump walked out. He later tweeted that the meeting was a “total waste of time.”

The White House has indicated that if Democrats continue to prove recalcitrant, the president may declare a national emergency to build the wall with funds from the Pentagon. Such a move would likely spark a flurry of legal challenges.

The president is scheduled to participate in a discussion on immigration and border security in McAllen, Texas, Thursday. He will also head to the Rio Grande for a border security briefing.