In a testy, televised exchange on Tuesday, President Donald Trump sparred with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer over his proposed border wall and a potential government shutdown.
Trump continued, “I’m not going to blame you for it. … The last time you shut it down it didn’t work. I will take the mantle for shutting down. I’m going to shut it down for border security.”
He argued, “20 times you called for, ‘I will shut down the government if I don’t get my wall.’ You said it. You said it.”
From left: Nancy Pelosi, Mike Pence, Donald Trump and Chuck Schumer.BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty
From left: Nancy Pelosi, Mike Pence, Donald Trump and Chuck Schumer.Mark Wilson/Getty
Pelosi also called the potential shutdown a “Trump shutdown.”
Throughout the opening of the spray, Pelosi suggested removing the press as the political leaders argued.
“Let us have our conversation and then we can meet with the press again,” Pelosi said.
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Speaking to reporters outside of the Oval Office, Schumer said of the president, “This Trump shutdown, this temper tantrum that he seems to throw, will not get him his wall and will hurt a lot of people.”
Ahead of the meeting, Trump addressed the funding issue in a series of tweets, claiming that “open borders” bring “large-scale crime and disease.”
He added that he was looking forward to his meeting with Schumer and Pelosi.
source: people.com
