Attorney General Jeff Sessions says Democrats should be blamed for any partial government shutdown that could come after Friday if Congress and President Trump don’t come together on a deal for a spending bill.
Sessions said on Fox News Monday if Democrats are willing to block a deal over funding Trump’s southern border wall, then they deserve the blame for parts of the federal government shutting down at the end of the week.
“The way the system works is whenever the government is shut down, people blame the Republicans,” he said. “But, it will be the Democrats who shut down the government to block the funding for the wall.”
Funding for Trump’s border wall is shaping up to be a major sticking point in the negotiations for a spending bill to keep the government fully operational past Friday. Trump said in an interview with the Associated Press last week that he’s not sure if he’ll sign a bill if it doesn’t include funding for the border wall.
Trump wants about $1 billion for the wall in the spending deal that funds the government for the rest of the fiscal year. Sessions said the plan is to include the rest of the money in next year’s budget.
Trump famously claimed Mexico would pay for the wall, but it now appears he’s willing to have the U.S. front the money, and get paid back by Mexico through taxing remittances and fees at the border.
Sessions said Democrats need to get on board with the deal or else they’ll pay at the ballot box.
“If the Democrats filibuster that and block it, they’re the ones shutting the whole government down just to keep the wall from being built,” Sessions said.
