Mark Meadows: President Trump, Veto this Spending Bill, Fight for the Wall

The House Freedom Caucus and Chairman Mark Meadows (R-NC) delivered a series of fiery speeches Wednesday night, calling on President Donald Trump and Congress to fund his promised border wall; Meadows said they will back Trump if he vetoes the spending bill.

The House Freedom Caucus led a special order on the House floor on Wednesday night, urging Congress and the president to continue fighting for the border wall.

Meadows said, “I rise to encourage my colleagues to stay in the fight to have the president deliver on a promise.”

The House Freedom Caucus proposed an amendment to the proposed spending bill that would fund $5 billion in border wall funding and close asylum loopholes, ending “catch and release.”

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said on Wednesday that he will sponsor a continuing resolution (CR) that would fund the government through February 8, and kick the border wall funding fight to when Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) likely becomes the next Speaker of the House.

Meadows, along with Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), have often been described as President Trump’s “pit bulls,” noting their strong will to fight for Trump’s America First agenda.



The North Carolina conservative noted that the president said that he would not sign another spending bill that does not include border wall funding.

Rep. Meadows charged:

The president many, many, months ago said that he would not sign another funding bill unless we gave him wall funding. So what did this House do? It passed a bill to fund the Department of Defense, a short-term CR, and they said you know what, we’re going to have that fight after the midterms.

Mr. Speaker, it is after the midterms and we are here with a number of my colleagues tonight to say that we’re ready to fight on behalf of all the freedom loving americans to make sure that we have secure borders and to make sure that never again do we have to worry about terrorists and drug traffickers coming across our southern borders.

Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ) spoke after Meadows, saying, “Securing the border is a fundamental constitutional duty of the federal government.”

Congressman Paul Gosar (R-AZ), a doctor, spoke of the opioid crisis and how the lack of a border wall has only led to more American addiction and death through the opioid crisis.

“A study came out earlier this year that said that the opioid crisis is deadlier than the Vietnam war in 1968,” Gosar explained. “The study said that the opioid crisis cost more than 1.7 million years of life.”

Gosar said, “Securing the border is a matter of life and death.”

Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA), said, “We are here to talk about the promise we made to the American people.”

Perry said that “this is our last chance, Nancy Pelosi will not do this.”

“The American people are counting on us to do what we said we would do,” Perry said.

Congressman Jim Jordan (R-OH), a co-founder of the Freedom Caucus, slammed House Republican and Democrat leadership for fooling the American people into thinking that they would fund Trump’s proposed border wall.

“Everyone knows the line ‘fool me once shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me,'” Jordan said. “The new line should be, ‘fool the American people four times, shame on Congress.”

Jordan continued, “Now they’re talking about kicking it to February 8th, you got to be kidding me. February 8th? When Nancy Pelosi is Speaker? Four different times we promised something and then kicked the can down the road.”

Rep. Jordan said, “The House Freedom Caucus is sick of the games. The American people are sick of the games.”

A Morning Consult poll released on Wednesday found that building a wall on America’s southern border and immigration reform rank as two of the top issues for Republican voters.

Congressman Steve Pearce (R-NM), whose district lies on America’s southern border, said, “All we’re asking is secure the border. Will we secure the border? The answer should be yes.”

Congressman Jody Hice (R-GA), said, “We have the opportunity in the spending bill to finally deliver for the American people.”

“The border crisis is for real. The wall is not the whole answer, but it is the first step,” Hice added.

Hice then noted, “Walls work, wherever walls have been placed there have been great results. For example, a 92 percent reduction in traffic in San Diego.”

Meadows then wrapped up the special order, calling on President Trump to veto the proposed CR, contending that House conservatives will fight with him to secure America’s border.

Chairman Meadows said:

I think that it’s appropriate to remind the American people that there is a bad case of Potomac fever up here in Washington, D.C. They forget what they promised the American people and yet what they must do is not forget it this time. Mr. President we’re going to back you up if you veto this bill, we’ll be there, but more importantly, the American people will be there, they’ll be there to support you. [Emphasis added.]

“Let’s build the wall and make sure that we do our job in Congress,” Meadows said.

https://www.breitbart.com/poli...-fight-for-the-wall/

This is a pivotal moment for President Trump, IMO.
I hope he makes the right choice and that is VETO, IMO as well.

I wonder what kinda of response the president could generate if he made an appeal for the public to fund the wall directly through a crowd funding source...

I think he's going to veto here and the Syria pullout may have just gotten him the money he needed.

The man is not as stupid as the Dems and Swamp Republicans think he is.

Quinnipiac Poll: Voter Support for Border Wall Hits Record High
https://www.cnsnews.com/blog/c...all-hits-record-high

No fuckin way PDJT caves.

D-Cali rep Garamundi now interviewed spewing what farmers need permit to haul out of their hog lot. Faulkner challenges his swill...er, talking points.

Does anyone get the idea that PDJT is trolling Congress? He's making noises like he might sign the CR. Maybe just to get the moles to stick their heads out of their hidey-holes, so he can whack them?

Posted in the Trump thread.

Trump throws government funding deal into doubt, presses anew for border wall money
Alex Pappas By Alex Pappas | Fox News

Setting the record straight about a possible government shutdown: How much would it impact workers and Americans?
Senior fellow at The National Taxpayers Union Mattie Duppler busts government shutdown myths.

A potential deal on Capitol Hill to avert a government shutdown with a short-term spending measure hit a roadblock Thursday as the White House said President Trump “does not want to go further” with anything that does not include sought-after funding for border security.

“The president is having a meeting with Republican House members at noon today,” White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said in a statement. “At this moment, the president does not want to go further without border security, which includes steel slats or a wall. The president is continuing to weigh his options.”

Congress faces a Friday deadline to fund a portion of the government or risk a partial shutdown. Lawmakers had been at a standstill over the president’s demands for $5 billion to fund the border wall.

But the Senate late Wednesday approved an interim spending bill that would keep several key departments of the federal government funded through February and avert a partial shutdown. The measure passed by the Senate does provide a total of $1.6 billion for border security and funds other agencies at current levels through Feb. 8, but does not include new wall funding. It now heads to the House.

It remains unclear whether Trump would sign or veto the measure if the House approves it, but the Thursday statement signaled Trump may seek changes. The statement comes after House conservatives fumed over the stopgap measure -- and its lack of new wall funding -- with some calling for putting a bill on the floor for a vote that includes Trump’s desired $5 billion for the wall.

“The House Republican Conference is ready to fight on the wall. Let’s get the $5B vote on the floor - today!” Rep. Mark Walker tweeted.


Rep. Mark Walker
✔
@RepMarkWalker
The House Republican Conference is ready to fight on the wall. Let’s get the $5B vote on the floor - today!

The conservative Republican Study Committee also called for Republicans to “stand united in calling for funding for the border wall. One of our last acts of this Congress should be fulfilling this key mandate demanded by the American people.”

House Freedom Caucus Chair Rep. Mark Meadows leading the charge for President Trump to veto the stopgap spending billVideo
House Freedom Caucus Chair Mark Meadows, R-N.C., told Fox News late Wednesday that "the political fallout will start" soon and that Trump risks doing “major damage” to his re-election effort in 2020 if a spending deal without border funding is approved.

When asked if the president should veto any stopgap funding bill that does not include money for the border wall, Meadows replied “yes.” He added that the "mistake" Republicans had made was that "we didn’t bring up the bill last week when we had the votes."

House Republicans, meanwhile, are generally frustrated about the lack of clarity. One GOP member told Fox News there was a “lack of direction, lack of message” from the White House about what they are for and against.

Republican members are worried about their political exposure if they relent after campaigning on building a wall.

“We stuck our neck out for border security,” said one senior House Republican.

Another source in the House GOP conference told Fox News that members want assurances from Trump on what he will or won’t sign before they vote on anything.

Signs of trouble first emerged when a House Republican press conference was abruptly canceled Thursday morning.

A lawmaker who was in Thursday morning's Republican conference meeting said House Speaker Paul Ryan abruptly exited the meeting, telling members the president was on the phone. Moments later, he canceled what could have been his final press conference, before leaving for the White House meeting.

Meanwhile, Speaker-designate Nancy Pelosi said Democrats will support the measure.

“This is a missed opportunity to pass full-year funding bills now," she said. "However, Democrats will be ready to fully, responsibly fund our government in January, and we will support this continuing resolution.”

Fox News' Chad Pergram, Mike Emanuel, Peter Doocy, Samuel Chamberlain and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

https://www.foxnews.com/politi...hout-border-security

quote:

Originally posted by chellim1:
Quinnipiac Poll: Voter Support for Border Wall Hits Record High
https://www.cnsnews.com/blog/c...all-hits-record-high

I still see this as a big problem though given people appear to be this retarded on the issue.

quote:

Republican Support: 86%
Democrat Opposition: 90%
Independents: 47% Support, 51% Oppose

SHUTDOWN SHOWDOWN: Trump Refuses To Sign Senate Continuing Resolution, Demands Border Security Funding

On Thursday, President Trump announced that he would not sign a short-term continuing resolution approved by the Senate — a bill that did not include funding for a border wall. Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R-WI), who was summoned to the White House alongside Reps. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), Jim Jordan (R-OH), and Mark Meadows (R-SC), announced Trump’s stance:

NBC News ✔
@NBCNews

BREAKING: Speaker Ryan says President Trump will not sign short-term continuing resolution passed by Senate.

Ryan stated that Trump would not sign the bill “because of his legitimate concerns for border security.” He pledged to go back to the House and work with members to change the bill to protect the border. McCarthy, who will act as minority leader in the next term, said, “We believe there’s still time. We can still have border security. ... We had a great discussion with him there. The president says what the Senate sent over is just kicking the can down the road.”

So, will the House come up with a workable version of the bill? Or will the Senate just kill the bill as soon as border funding is added? Without negotiation with Senate Democrats, any border funding would be stripped out in conference between the House and Senate anyway. The onus is now on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) to come up with some sort of solution.

The smart money is on additional border funding without funding explicitly delegated to the border wall. Democrats don’t want to hand Trump a victory, feel that they have him over a barrel — after all, he’s been wishy-washy on the continuing resolution from the beginning — and believe that a government shutdown will be blamed on Trump anyway. That means they’re likely to either drive a hard bargain or refuse a bargain outright. After all, they take over Congress in the new year anyway.

The most likely solution: McConnell tells Trump that no bill is forthcoming with what he wants, but negotiates some sort of border security fig leaf for which Trump can claim victory. Democrats claim they’ve defeated Trump’s agenda by explicitly barring use of the funding for the building of a border wall.

But this is the time for Trump to stand strong, if he can: there won’t be any more opportunities once Nancy Pelosi is Speaker of the House. Simply put, if Trump doesn’t get the wall now, he’s not getting it before the 2020 election.

https://www.dailywire.com/news...n-senate-ben-shapiro

Shut the pig down and build the wall.

The House just passed bill to avert the shutdown with $5.7B in funding for the Wall.

House approves spending bill with $5.7B for border wall
Samuel Chamberlain By Samuel Chamberlain | Fox News

House passes procedural bill to set up another spending bill
Shutdown showdown continues as Republicans fail to agree on a spending bill; Peter Doocy reports from Capitol Hill.

The House of Representatives Thursday approved a bill that would fund most of the federal government through early February -- and provides $5.7 billion for President Trump's long-promised border wall -- increasing the chances of a partial government shutdown later this week.


Eight Republicans joined all 177 voting Democrats to oppose the measure, which passed 217-185. The bill now goes to the Senate, where it is certain to fall short of the 60 votes needed for passage since the chamber's 49 Democrats are against the border wall. That in turn will increase the chances that parts of the federal government will cease operations at midnight Friday.

The vote came hours after Trump told House GOP leaders that he would not enact a Senate-passed package that does not provide money for the barrier.

In a video statement tweeted Thursday afternoon, Trump said he was "fighting very hard for border security" by insisting on funding for the wall, a central promise of his 2016 presidential campaign.

Donald J. Trump
✔
@realDonaldTrump
Democrats, it is time to come together and put the SAFETY of the AMERICAN PEOPLE before POLITICS. Border security must become a #1 priority!

"We need the wall. The Democrats know it, everybody knows it," Trump said. "It's only a game when they say, 'You don’t need the wall.' ... They want to try and do anything possible to hurt us because of the fact it’s politics. I understand that. I don’t even hold it against them, except you should always put your country first and they’re not doing that."

"Watch what happens," Trump said in concluding his statement.

Trump says funding bill must include border security; chief White House correspondent John Roberts reports.

The Senate measure, which passed by voice vote late Wednesday, provided a total of $1.6 billion for border security but did not include funding for a border wall. Trump's allies had warned him that he would have even less leverage to demand wall funding after Democrats take control of the House on Jan. 3 and worried that Trump's failure to make good on his signature campaign promise could hamper his re-election campaign.

After meeting with Trump at the White House earlier Thursday, House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., and House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., told reporters that Trump had told them he would not sign the measure out of "legitimate concerns for border security."

Conservative talk radio host Rush Limbaugh said Trump had "gotten word" to him that he would either be "getting funding to the border or he's shutting the whole thing down." A day earlier, Limbaugh complained that it appeared "Trump gets nothing and the Democrats get everything, including control of the House."

Trump urges Congress to add funding for wall to spending bill as shutdown deadline looms
House passes procedural vote for a new government spending bill; House Majority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy weighs in.

The president issued threatening tweets and a stern statement from his press secretary before calling GOP lawmakers to the White House, where he told them he wasn't on board with the Senate measure, which would fund much of the government through Feb. 8.

"I am asking Congress to defend the border of our nation," Trump said at a White House event. "Walls work, whether we like it or not."

Ratcheting up the suspense, Trump added: "I look forward to signing a bill that fulfills our fundamental duty to the American people ... we'll see what we can do."

Democratic leaders were incredulous Thursday evening, with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., saying the president was throwing a "temper tantrum."

"Today's events have made one thing clear: President Trump is plunging the country into chaos," said Schumer, referencing the resignation of Defense Secretary James Mattis in addition to the pending shutdown. " ... The Trump temper tantrum may produce a government shutdown. It will not get him his wall. Donald Trump wants a shutdown and [Republicans] seem to be so afraid that they're going to go along. We'll see."

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said the measure to fund a border wall was "a shameful bill that is unworthy of this House of Representatives and certainly of the American people."

On the House floor, Minority Whip Steny Hoyer, D-Md., accused Republicans of "playing political games ... to pander to the president of the United States."

"How sad it is that the Republican leadership of this Congress ... have consistently been unable to meet their fiscal responsibilities," Hoyer said. " ... This bill is going nowhere. The Senate won't accept it. Now perhaps the Senate will send it back amended. Perhaps."

Despite his line in the sand, Trump appeared to float one possible path to compromise, referring to "steel slats" at the border rather than the concrete barrier he'd talked about during the campaign. With that phrasing, Trump appeared to be describing fencing, to which Congress is more amenable.

The White House had previously floated another possible workaround, suggesting Trump would approve a deal with no wall dollars and pursue other funding options. Trump said he would use the military to fund and build the wall, while White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said Trump had directed all his Cabinet secretaries to look for usable funds.

Fox News' Alex Pappas and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

https://www.foxnews.com/politi...h-5b-for-border-wall

Shut it down......hopefully the cattle will realize that 50% OF .GOV is not really needed.

Who are the AH republicans that joined the traitors?

Jason Chaffetz: Trump's border wall may get funding after all (thanks to this dirty little Washington secret)



Can the government spend money that has not been specifically authorized by Congress? In theory – no. In practice? Absolutely.

Each year the government spends hundreds of billions of dollars on things that are not specifically authorized by Congress. Both Democrats and Republicans have been complicit in this practice.

President Donald Trump, to his credit, has worked hard to get his wall funding properly authorized. But he may ultimately do exactly what presidents before him have done: take advantage of the broken Congressional process.

Washington’s dirty little secret is that unauthorized spending is not even uncommon anymore. As a freshman member of Congress, this truth stunned me – and I was not alone. By my estimation, there were many in the body who disapproved of the practice. But to our disappointment, the body as a whole was not inclined to address the issue.

The Democrats may feign exasperation with the president potentially spending “unauthorized” money on the wall, but they have enthusiastically participated in the budgetary games that will make it possible. During the Obama administration, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated $310 billion was spent on unauthorized appropriations in FY 2016 – the last fiscal year of his presidency.

The federal budget is enormous – more than $4 trillion each year, of which roughly $1 trillion is discretionary. It is Congress’s job to authorize programs and appropriate funds for them from this $1 trillion.

However, the budget categories under which programs are authorized and funds are appropriated are very broad, and since Congress doesn’t pass specific language about every last dollar’s use, discretionary funds are inevitably used for things that Congress never specifically funds.

This is how the executive branch often gets the money it needs to do things that Congress won’t formally authorize. It finds money that has been either broadly appropriated or appropriated to a program that is expired and redirects it to a related program or purpose of its choosing.

Each year the CBO attempts to track these unauthorized expenditures. In July 2018, it reported this: “CBO has identified 1,035 authorizations of appropriations that expired before the beginning of fiscal year 2018. Those authorizations appeared in 261 different laws and, when most recently in effect, authorized a combined annual total of $168 billion for certain agencies, programs, or functions. By CBO’s estimate, $318 billion has been appropriated for fiscal year 2018 for those agencies, programs, or functions.”

It is my belief that this practice affords a president far too much flexibility to substitute the administration’s priorities for those of Congress. Constitutionally, the budget is to be set by the people’s representatives, not by the president.

During the appropriations process, members regularly attempt to insert language limiting how the administration can spend money during the fiscal year. But these efforts often fail for two reasons.

First, Congress continues to appropriate money by continuing resolution, which just extends an existing spending bill and therefore doesn’t include these limitations. Second, the creativity of every administration stretches much further than any limitations Congress can impose.

While the broken budget process may benefit President Trump in his efforts to build the wall, it is still a broken process. We should be talking about how to fix it. Many of us believe there should not be a separate appropriations committee that regularly bypasses the work of the authorizing committees.

Until that changes, the spending will continue to be inconsistent with what is actually authorized by law.



https://www.foxnews.com/opinio...le-washington-secret

Just read story House has passed spending bill WITH Wall money, "217-185" or there abouts

https://www.foxnews.com/politi...h-5b-for-border-wall

“Eight Republicans joined all 177 voting Democrats to oppose the measure”

Once again Democrats hold it together and eight Republicans turn their back on their voters.

Why $5.7B, thought $10B was needed.

What is the use of having the Presidency, House and Sentate, if Republicans do not know how to yield power?

I’d like to know who those 8 Republicans are?

quote:

Originally posted by deepocean:

quote:

Originally posted by nojoy:
I’d like to know who those 8 Republicans are?

Was this the vote?

http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2018/roll472.xml#N

8 Republican Nays
Amash
Buck
Curbelo (FL)
Hurd
Paulsen
Ros-Lehtinen
Upton
Valadao

Republicans Not Voting
Black
Comstock
Duncan (SC)
Hultgren
Issa
Jenkins (KS)
Jones (NC)
Love
Noem
Roskam
Trott