PHILADELPHIA — Congress will take up a special spending bill this spring to pay for the construction of a wall on the Mexican border, a top GOP lawmaker said Wednesday.
“There will be a supplemental appropriations this spring to help on the wall,” Rep. Chris Collins, R-N.Y., told reporters. He’s a member of the GOP leadership team who spoke after a closed-door presentation from House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.
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Republican leaders told House and Senate GOP lawmakers about the upcoming bill during their annual retreat at a downtown Philadelphia hotel.
The announcement came hours after President Donald Trump signed an executive order for constructing the wall. He said the wall would be financed initially by the United States, but that Mexico would somehow reimburse the U.S. later.
Collins said Republican leaders did not discuss the cost or how it would be paid for within the federal budget.
“It’s going to take eight or ten billion [dollars],” Collins said. “That’s just me throwing out a number.”
