Record-breaking partial shutdown entered its 24th day on Monday, as Trump was set to address hard-hit farmers.
US President Donald Trump said on Monday that he rejected a proposal from a Republican ally in the Senate that would have temporarily reopened closed parts of the government to allow resumption of negotiations on a funding standoff.
As the shutdown, the longest of its type in US history, entered its 24th day, Trump told reporters he disagreed with Republican Senator Lindsey Graham’s proposal to reopen the government for three weeks.
If talks failed during that period, Graham said on Sunday, then Trump could go ahead and declare a national emergency to bypass Congress and get money for a wall on the US-Mexico border – the issue that triggered the shutdown on December 22.
Democrats have rejected Trump’s demand for funding for the border wall in addition to other border funds but have said they would support $1.3bn to bolster border security in other ways, including beefing up the number of Border Patrol agents and increasing surveillance.
‘National emergency’ ‘
Trump has said he could declare a national emergency if he unable to strike a deal with politicians, although on Monday he told reporters he was not looking to do so.
He retweeted criticism of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer that urged the top Democratic leaders to negotiate with him. “I’ve been waiting all weekend. Democrats must get to work now. Border must be secured!” Trump wrote in an early morning tweet on Monday.
About one-quarter of the US government shut down last month as Republicans controlled both chambers of Congress as well as the White House. In December, Trump said he would take responsibility for the shutdown but has since shifted the blame to the Democrats. A growing proportion of Americans blame Trump for the closures, a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll found.
Source: aljazeera.com
Saturday, May 9, 2026
